Kim Dong-yeon: "Spending Money Will Never Raise Birth Rates... Culture Must Change"

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, called for a new change in awareness, stating that continuing to spend money as is will not solve population issues such as low birth rates. He especially emphasized that to address the current population problems, more opportunities and more equitable opportunities must be given to young people.

On the 14th, Governor Kim attended the '2022 Gyeonggi Province Population Policy Forum' held at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government auditorium and said, "We intend to always keep population issues in mind throughout the entire provincial administration when considering policy plans," adding, "This is not something handled by a specific department or organization, but something the entire province must cooperate on and commit to." He made it clear that solving population issues is a major provincial administrative task.

He also stated, "The biggest cause of low birth rates is anxiety about the future," and stressed, "To eliminate this, we must revitalize the economy and work together to provide young people with more opportunities and more equitable opportunities to work, start businesses, study, and marry."

In particular, he said, "Even though budgets have been spent for a long time to solve the low birth rate problem, the question always arises whether spending money will increase the birth rate," and added, "The answer lies in changing culture, such as gender equality, sharing household chores, and breaking the glass ceiling at work. It is meaningless if men take parental leave but do not share household chores at home. I hope we move beyond normative talk and take action."

Meanwhile, the forum held under the theme 'A Major Shift to Population Strategies Responding to Social Change,' hosted by Gyeonggi Province and co-organized by the Gyeonggi Research Institute, was attended by over 300 domestic and international population experts and residents of the province.

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