[2024 Budget Proposal] Despite 'Abolition' Policy... Ministry of Gender Equality and Family's Budget Increased by 147.5 Billion Won Next Year

Budget of 1.7153 Trillion KRW, Increase of 147.5 Billion KRW
Focus on Single-Parent Support and Low Birthrate in 'Family Sector'
Gender Equality and Youth Budgets Decrease

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, which the government is planning to abolish, has proposed a budget for next year that is 9.4% higher than this year. This increase is due to an approximately 170.7 billion KRW rise in the budget related to family policies addressing population and low birthrate issues.

According to the 2024 budget proposal released by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on the 29th, a total of 1.7153 trillion KRW has been allocated. This is an increase of 147.5 billion KRW from this year’s main budget of 1.5678 trillion KRW. The ministry’s budget has steadily increased, following a 102.8 billion KRW rise compared to the previous year.

Among these, the family policy sector saw the largest increase. The family policy budget rose from 1.0262 trillion KRW this year to 1.1969 trillion KRW next year, an increase of 170.7 billion KRW (16.6%).

In particular, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family plans to increase support for single-parent, multicultural, and vulnerable families. Welfare benefits such as child-rearing expenses for single-parent families will receive 535.6 billion KRW (an increase of 39.7 billion KRW), support for children of multicultural families and employment support for marriage immigrants will receive 48.5 billion KRW (an increase of 27.8 billion KRW), and support for vulnerable crisis families will be allocated 34.3 billion KRW (an increase of 23.9 billion KRW).

Additionally, support in the areas of low birthrate response and job creation will be expanded. The number of beneficiaries for childcare services and multi-child support will increase, and childcare allowances will be raised. The related budget is set at 467.8 billion KRW (an increase of 113.2 billion KRW). Furthermore, 21.7 billion KRW has been allocated to expand women’s vocational education and training programs, an increase of 300 million KRW.

Alongside this, the administrative support budget will increase slightly from 42.1 billion KRW this year to 42.4 billion KRW next year, a rise of 300 million KRW (0.8%).

A ministry official stated, "In line with the current government’s policy direction, we have focused on welfare for the vulnerable and responses to low birthrate," adding, "Single-parent, multicultural, and vulnerable family policies are included in the family policy budget, and support for women who have suffered violence has been strengthened." Since its inauguration, the Yoon Seok-yeol administration has emphasized the need for measures addressing low birthrate and welfare for the vulnerable.

On the other hand, the budget for gender equality policies will decrease by 6.2 billion KRW (2.5%) from 246.9 billion KRW this year to 240.7 billion KRW next year. The youth policy budget will also decrease by 17.3 billion KRW (6.9%) from 252.5 billion KRW this year to 235.2 billion KRW next year. The ministry explained that these sectors do not require large-scale projects. However, 2.5 billion KRW (an increase of 2.2 billion KRW) has been allocated for support tailored to high-risk youth, including those at risk of suicide and self-harm, and 1.1 billion KRW has been set aside for a one-stop package support for reclusive and isolated youth.

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