‘Cherished Like You’, Expansion of Busan-Style Child-Friendly Village Project Underway

Parenting Dad Group, Mom Group, Halmi Group... Diversification and Club Revitalization

Expansion of Child-Friendly Village Projects, Creation of Region-Specific Friendly Environments

Busan City has selected 9 districts as project sites this year to expand the 'Busan-type Childcare-Friendly Village Operation Support Project,' following the public contest held in March.

The 9 selected districts and counties are Busanjin-gu, Nam-gu, Buk-gu, Haeundae-gu, Gangseo-gu, Yeonje-gu, Suyeong-gu, Sasang-gu, and Gijang-gun.

Busan City Hall.

The 'Busan-type Childcare-Friendly Village' is a community that supports parents and children to live happy and healthy lives. After research conducted from 2021 to 2022, pilot cases were applied and development plans were explored, and last year, the project was launched for the first time nationwide targeting 4 districts.

This year, the childcare-friendly villages will be expanded to 9 districts to enhance citizens' perception and satisfaction by creating a regionally customized child-rearing friendly environment. The budget has also been increased to 150 million KRW compared to last year. This is also part of Busan's all-day 'Dangsincheoreom Aejijungji' (Cherish Like You) initiative.

The 'Childcare-Friendly Village Operation Support Project' is broadly divided into 'essential projects' targeting three areas?▲services ▲human networks ▲philosophy and values?and other 'district/county region (by living area) customized linkage discovery projects.'

This year, there were many applications from newly participating districts and counties (Nam-gu, Haeundae-gu, Gangseo-gu, Sasang-gu, Gijang-gun), and Busanjin-gu, Buk-gu, Yeonje-gu, and Suyeong-gu, entering their second year of participation, have strengthened their projects by reflecting many citizen opinions.

In addition to childcare father groups, the target groups have diversified to include childcare mother groups, childcare grandmother groups (Golden Mama), and childcare sisters, reflecting the characteristics of each district. With the establishment of the Dagachikiwoom Solution Group, childcare salons and parent childcare discussion groups have also activated independent childcare club activities.

The Dagachikiwoom Solution Group refers to a parenting and communication empathy parent network composed of 20 to 30 children aged 5 and under in each district's living area.

District-specific projects include ▲Buk-gu’s pre-fingerprint registration project linked with the police station to prevent missing children ▲Busanjin-gu’s playground search ▲Yeonje-gu’s pop-up playground ▲Gijang-gun’s visiting childcare playground (Yoyo Bus) ▲Gangseo-gu’s childcare-friendly village map ‘EodeGO.’ The city plans to share these various district projects and collaboratively promote excellent policies.

In particular, within the broad scope of the childcare-friendly village project, the city will coordinate with participating districts/counties, childcare support organizations, and related local institutions to promote the project and various campaigns, spreading a positive culture of childbirth and parenting that lasts 365 days a year.

Mayor Park Hyung-jun stated, “As the saying goes, it takes a whole village to raise a child. Our city has announced the 'Dangsincheoreom Aejijungji' policy, which means Busan will raise and educate children with all its heart all day long, reflecting our determination to raise the children, the greatest 'value' of our society, together with the city.” He added, “By further expanding support for the operation of the Busan-type Childcare-Friendly Village this year, we will strive to create a childcare-friendly environment that citizens can feel more closely in each living area, improving the quality of life for parents and children.”

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