Governor Kim Dong-yeon: "Population Issues Are Our Society's Gray Rhino Alongside Climate Change"

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, diagnosed the population issue, along with climate change, as a "Gray Rhino," the greatest challenge we must solve.

The Gray Rhino refers to a crisis that everyone knows and senses but fails to properly address or even dares to confront.

On the 11th, on the occasion of "Population Day," Governor Kim attended the "11th Population Day Commemoration Event" held at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Auditorium and stated, "Although I am a rookie governor, I want to respond differently to the population issue and climate problem, which are the Gray Rhinos of our society, in my administrative duties."

Governor Kim was originally not planning to attend the event that day, but it is known that he made a sudden decision to participate due to his special interest in population issues.

Governor Kim first pointed out, "The population issue is a risk that everyone knows and senses, but we are not properly responding to it or even daring to do so. One reason for the low birth rate is that the younger generation does not see hope for the future. This problem cannot be solved by a specific organization or person."

He continued, "I believe the entire province must be engaged in addressing the population issue. It is not just about investing budgets through projects, but approaching it more comprehensively from many aspects."

In particular, he said, "I hope we avoid ritualistic, formalistic, superficial approaches or preaching like Confucius. Even if small, we must create substantial change," citing "Appa-Hi" as an example.

Appa-Hi is a mutual communication program involving 1,000 male caregivers in the province who have children aged 3 to 7. It includes online missions with children, participation in parenting education, and experiential activities with children.

Governor Kim added, "There are many problems to solve, such as population decline due to low birth rates and changes in population structure due to an increase in the elderly population. I want to properly establish this from the start. I came today to express this sincerity. If you cooperate, I will try to do well."

Meanwhile, the commemorative ceremony was attended by about 300 residents, including awardees, and was broadcast live through the social broadcast Live Gyeonggi (live.gg.go.kr). The Population Day event was held under the theme "Changing Tomorrow, Our Today!" to recognize that population issues are not future problems but current ones and to turn the current population crisis into an opportunity.

The province designated June 9 to 16 as Gyeonggi Province Population Week and is conducting various programs to think and deliberate on population issues with residents, including happiness lectures for residents, population policy forums, and fathers' parenting discussion meetings.

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