Youth Solidarity vs Gyeongnam Province, Renewed Dispute Over Youth Center Closure

Gyeongnam Youth Solidarity held a press conference criticizing Gyeongnam Province for deciding to abolish the Gyeongnam Youth Center. / Photo by Se-ryeong Lee ryeong@

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] The Gyeongnam Youth Coalition has criticized Gyeongnam Province for deciding to abolish the Gyeongnam Youth Center.

The Youth Coalition held a press conference on the 7th, stating, "We condemn the Gyeongnam provincial government for deciding youth policies without communicating with the youth."

They argued, "According to the 2021 budget status of the Gyeongnam Research Institute's general account, 61.6% is personnel expenses, 10.6% is operating expenses, and only 27.8% is research funds," adding, "Isn't there a structural problem similar to the Youth Center, with 61.8% for center operation and 28.2% for youth support, also present in the Gyeongnam Research Institute?"

They also said, "While other projects blame COVID-19 for poor execution of projects and expected expenditures, the Youth Center, which freely operates spaces such as shared kitchens, shared cafes, and shared galleries, is not judged by the same standards."

"Changwon City is a key city of the province with a large population, and institutions with similar roles are concentrated in Changwon," they emphasized, "It is hard to accept abolishing only the Youth Center due to overlapping roles."

They stated, "Rather than closing the center, present desirable alternatives for efficient operation through communication with the youth, with responsibility and reliability."

In response, Gyeongnam Province rebutted, "The Gyeongnam Research Institute is a research organization, while the Gyeongnam Youth Center is an intermediary support organization, so their institutional characteristics are clearly different, making simple comparisons based on operating cost proportions unreasonable."

They explained that due to the nature of a research organization, the proportion of personnel expenses is high, and in 2021, they conducted 311 self-initiated research projects, 32 academic service contracts, 31 cultural heritage excavation services, and 13 cultural heritage subsidies.

"When the total budget of the Youth Center increased, operating costs such as personnel and operating expenses also rose," they presented data showing that in 2021, the cost for operating the center alone was 580 million KRW.

Regarding the claim that the number of Youth Center users decreased due to COVID-19, they responded, "Even before COVID-19, the average daily number was only 9.7."

A provincial official added, "The decision to abolish was made considering not only this year's visitor numbers but also from the establishment to the present," and said, "Most visitors to the center were youth from areas adjacent to Changwon, and it was judged that maintaining a center located in a place difficult for youth from other cities and counties to access physically was less effective than creating regional hub spaces."

"We will reorganize the three-stage youth support system of Gyeongnam Province - Youth Center - Youth to increase accountability for youth policies and strengthen support for youth," they also said.

The province allocated 102.7 billion KRW for youth support in 2023, and from next year plans to create youth hub spaces with a total project cost of 2 billion KRW to improve accessibility for youth in cities and counties, and to carry out a youth culture activation contest project with an investment of 2 billion KRW.

A provincial official said, "Only the space called the Youth Center will disappear, but support for youth will rather be strengthened," adding, "Rational adjustment of the budget prepared with the precious taxes of the residents is the natural duty of Gyeongnam Province."

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