Gangwon Province Becomes First to Provide Basic Childcare Allowance for Children Under 8 Nationwide... Selected as Outstanding Local Government for Child Policy

Gangwon Province Selected as Outstanding Local Government for 2024 Child Policy
Gangwon Childcare Basic Allowance Recognized for Pioneering Nationwide Expansion

Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province (Governor Kim Jin-tae) has been selected as an outstanding local government in the nationwide evaluation of the "2024 Child Policy Implementation Plan Performance," conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare.

Exterior view of Gangwon Provincial Government Building. Provided by Gangwon Provincial Government

This evaluation comprehensively assessed each local government's child policy planning, implementation, and achievements in accordance with the Ministry of Health and Welfare's second Basic Child Policy Plan (2020-2024). The province was recognized for its efforts to implement child policies tailored to local characteristics and to create a child-friendly environment.

The province identified and carried out 150 projects based on four main objectives: "Realization of Children's Rights as Rights Holders," "Support for Healthy and Balanced Child Development," "Strengthening Public Responsibility for Fair Opportunities," and "Innovating Child Policies in Response to Disasters." In addition, strengthening the public child protection system through cooperation with relevant agencies was cited as a major achievement.

In particular, under the local government’s autonomous indicators, the province's flagship childcare policy, the Gangwon Childcare Basic Allowance, received high marks. The Gangwon Childcare Basic Allowance, the first of its kind in the country, was expanded in 2023 to cover children up to under 8 years old, from the previous limit of 4 years old. The allowance provides between 100,000 won and up to 500,000 won per month, with a total of 27.6 million won supported per child.

This system has been recognized as a case that substantially reduces the childcare burden on parents and contributes to addressing low birth rates and regional depopulation. Including this initiative, the province supports a budget exceeding 100 million won per child from birth through university.

Jung Youngmi, Director of the Welfare and Health Bureau of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, stated, "Being selected as an outstanding local government this time is a recognition of the province's child policies, including the Gangwon Childcare Basic Allowance." She added, "We will continue to expand child policies that residents can truly feel, in order to create an environment where children can grow up healthy and safe."

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