Gyeonggi Province Governor Transition Committee Promotes 'Gyeonggi Youth Chance' Project Ensuring Youth Dreams and Opportunities

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] The Gyeonggi Province Governor Transition Committee is promoting three 'Gyeonggi Youth Chance' projects: Gyeonggi Youth School, Gyeonggi Youth Ladder, and Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year.

The Gyeonggi Youth School is designed based on the Parang Semester system (a system where students propose course subjects) implemented by Governor-elect Kim Dong-yeon during his tenure as president of Ajou University.

It aims to provide youth with opportunities to explore jobs and career paths, focusing on supporting youth in setting self-directed challenges and career planning at the Gyeonggi Province level. The project will be fully implemented after selecting tasks by participating youth, forming mentor groups and networks, and going through related ordinance revision and enactment procedures.

The project will start at two universities in the province and gradually expand.

The Gyeonggi Youth Ladder project expands and applies the After You program (overseas university training for low-income students) introduced by Governor-elect Kim during his presidency at Ajou University to the entire Gyeonggi Province. The selection evaluation criteria include contributions to the social community, aiming for the growth of both youth and local communities together.

The Gyeonggi Youth Gap Year project is designed to provide opportunities for self-exploration, seeking desired lifestyles, and various experiences and challenges during the transition process of entering school or preparing for employment.

It will be solidly promoted through collaboration and linkage with private gap year specialized institutions, preparing specific programs and securing professional personnel. A gap year refers to a period during which one temporarily pauses or combines work or study while experiencing volunteering, travel, career exploration, education, internships, entrepreneurship, etc., to find career paths and aptitudes.

The transition committee also plans to expand and implement programs with high satisfaction introduced during the 7th local government under former Governor Lee Jae-myung, such as 'Youth Basic Income' and 'Youth Interview Allowance.' For Youth Basic Income, they are reviewing easing the three-year residency requirement in the province and recognizing military service periods as residency periods. The Youth Interview Allowance is also planned to be expanded from the current 6 times, up to 300,000 KRW, to 10 times, up to 500,000 KRW.

The 'Free Language Test Application Support,' currently implemented in some cities and counties within the province, will be expanded to all cities and counties, and plans are underway to support application fees for various practical qualification exams as well.

Additionally, projects such as ▲Gyeonggi Youth Culture Coupon distribution ▲Expansion of youth political participation ▲Acquisition tax exemption for first-time homebuyers among youth are also under consideration.

Lee Ja-hyung, Vice Chairman of the Social Welfare Subcommittee of the Transition Committee, stated, "By providing youth with opportunities for social mobility and job and career exploration, we will realize the values of 'self-direction, dreams, and guaranteed opportunities' and create a Gyeonggi Province where youth want to live."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.