Chungnam to Address Rural Labor Shortage by 'Borrowing Hands from Laos'

[Asia Economy (Hongseong) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province is joining hands with the Laos government to address the shortage of rural labor.

According to the province on the 13th, Kim Tae-heum, Governor of Chungnam, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) yesterday at the Chungnam Provincial Office with Byikam Katanya, Minister of the Ministry of Labor, Social Welfare and Solidarity of Laos, aimed at promoting exchanges and strengthening friendly cooperation.

The MOU includes mutual cooperation between 15 cities and counties in Chungnam and the Ministry of Labor, Social Welfare and Solidarity of Laos to introduce foreign seasonal workers to ensure smooth supply and demand of agricultural labor.

The province will support the development of labor and social welfare sectors in Laos by providing information and communication technology (IT) equipment such as computers and emergency vehicles, while the Laos Ministry will cooperate in supplying seasonal workers to rural areas in South Korea.

According to the MOU, the 15 cities and counties in Chungnam will carry out the invitation procedures for Laotian seasonal workers, assign the incoming seasonal workers to agricultural employers, and perform guidance, education, counseling, and support tasks.

In particular, efforts will be made to protect the working conditions and human rights of seasonal workers, and support will be provided for relief in case of human rights violations.

The Employment Bureau of the Laos Ministry of Labor, Social Welfare and Solidarity will support all administrative procedures until the seasonal workers enter the country and facilitate communication between the seasonal workers and the cities and counties.

Laotian seasonal workers are scheduled to be deployed to farming sites in the Chungnam region starting next year. The target group includes male and female agricultural workers aged 25 to 50, excluding those with criminal records, illegal stay history, or suspected COVID-19 infection.

Employers in the province include farms producing crops, agricultural cooperative corporations, and agricultural companies, which must provide appropriate housing and working environments for seasonal workers and take safety measures during work processes.

Kim Tae-heum, Governor of Chungnam, said, “Chungnam is striving to transform the structure and system of rural areas by developing smart farms and transferring farmland to the younger generation to nurture agriculture as a future industry. We hope that the excellent workforce from Laos will help resolve the current labor shortage in our rural areas and contribute to the growth of Chungnam agriculture.”

Meanwhile, the total cultivation area of 36 major crops in Chungnam is 187,951 hectares, with an estimated annual labor demand of 10.53 million people.

Among them, the employed labor force is 2.95 million, and the labor shortage has become entrenched, making the recruitment of foreign workers essential, according to the province’s assessment.

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