Ministry of Economy and Finance Restructures Low Birthrate Projects... Focus on 'Housing, Childcare, and Work-Family Balance'

On the 4th, Kim Dong-il, Director of the Budget Office at the Ministry of Economy and Finance, held a meeting on responses to low birthrate policies at Solbita Daycare Center in Sejong City, together with experts, related ministries, and field workers.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Director Kim stated, "Despite large-scale budget investments so far, the birthrate continues to decline," adding, "This is due to the expansion of projects based on inertia without selection and concentration grounded in effectiveness verification." He further explained, "Just as you need to lose fat before building muscle, to enhance the effectiveness of low birthrate policies, projects with low effectiveness must be boldly eliminated through restructuring of low birthrate initiatives." He also announced, "Based on this, policy efforts will be concentrated on the three core areas that are the main causes of low birthrate: housing, childcare, and work-family balance."

Director Kim emphasized that a thorough evaluation of existing projects must precede, urging national research institutions such as the newly established Population Policy Evaluation Center (Korea Institute of Public Finance) to conduct strict and objective analysis and evaluation. He stated, "Next year's government budget will be organized from a national perspective for the beneficiaries, the people, rather than from the viewpoint of individual ministries, and inter-ministerial collaboration will be significantly strengthened," adding, "We will enhance coordination among ministries." The Ministry of Economy and Finance plans to review the various opinions raised on this day and reflect them in the budget formulation process for next year.

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