Youth Foundation, NH Nonghyup Bank, and Six Regional Banks Join Forces to Support Mobility and Settlement of Local Youth

Pursuing tailored support for young people relocating and settling in the regions in line with the major shift toward the "5-Poles and 3-Special Zones" national balanced development strategy
Chairman Oh Changseok: "We must broaden the scope of financial support not only for young people but for everyone returning to their hometowns"

They are taking a commemorative photo after the signing ceremony for a business agreement between the Youth Foundation, Nonghyup Bank and six regional banks. From left: Jeju Bank Kim Hodae, Executive Vice President; Gwangju Bank Kim Wonju, Executive Vice President; IM Bank Kang Junghun, President; Nonghyup Bank Kang Taeyoung, President; Kim Minseok, Prime Minister; Oh Changseok, Chairman of the Youth Foundation; Busan Bank Kim Seongju, President; Gyeongnam Bank Kim Taehan, President; Jeonbuk Bank Kim Eunho, Executive Vice President.

The Youth Foundation (Chairman Oh Changseok, hereinafter the "Foundation"), a corporate foundation, signed a "Business Agreement to Support Mobility and Settlement of Local Youth" with NH Nonghyup Bank and six regional banks at the Youth Foundation in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Thursday, February 12. Prime Minister Kim Minseok attended the signing ceremony and delivered a congratulatory address.

This agreement was promoted in line with the government's "5-Poles and 3-Special Zones" national balanced development strategy, with the aim of creating a foundation for youth who move from the Seoul metropolitan area to the regions to settle down. By combining the Foundation's capabilities in youth policy with the regional financial networks of the banking sector, the goal is to establish a customized financial and livelihood support model for young people relocating to non-metropolitan areas.

At the event, representatives of eight institutions, including Youth Foundation Chairman Oh Changseok, NH Nonghyup Bank President Kang Taeyoung, Busan Bank President Kim Sungju, iM Bank President Kang Jeonghun, Gyeongnam Bank President Kim Taehan, Gwangju Bank Vice President Kim Wonju, Jeonbuk Bank Vice President Kim Eunho, and Jeju Bank Vice President Kim Hodae, attended and signed the agreement.

Through this agreement, the Youth Foundation and the seven banks plan to cooperate on: (1) carrying out role-based social contribution activities that leverage the core functions of finance; (2) providing full-cycle support for young people, from their inflow into the regions to settlement and growth; and (3) building a joint model for regional balanced development through an alliance of Nonghyup Bank and regional banks.

The signing ceremony also featured case presentations by two "return youth" who had moved from the Seoul metropolitan area to the regions and successfully settled there. They shared the practical difficulties they faced during the settlement process and emphasized the importance of creating an initial settlement environment, stating that "regional settlement of young people is not something that can be achieved by individual choice alone; structural support is needed to address settlement costs and access to finance."

Prime Minister Kim Minseok said, "To ease the concentration of young people in the Seoul metropolitan area, package support is needed for those who move to the regions, including jobs and housing, and the role of finance is particularly significant," adding, "Starting with today's agreement, we will more actively support young people's employment and start-ups in non-metropolitan regions."

Prime Minister Kim added, "To discuss all policies related to young people, we established the Youth-Related Ministers' Meeting and held the first meeting last week. At this meeting, we discussed measures to support 'resting youth' who are currently inactive, and in particular, by having young committee chairs who are ruling and opposition party lawmakers participate, we demonstrated the first example of tripartite cooperation among the ruling party, opposition party, and government."

He continued, "At the second Youth-Related Ministers' Meeting, in addition to the existing agenda item of measures to eliminate the marriage penalty, we will also add an agenda item on youth finance, especially financial support measures for local youth. I ask the Prime Minister's Office, the Financial Services Commission, and the Youth Foundation to discuss this together."

Oh Changseok, Chairman of the Youth Foundation, said, "In cooperation with the seven banks that have joined us in this initiative today, we will prepare measures that can provide young people with a practical foundation for settling in the regions."

Accordingly, the seven banks plan to establish a customized financial support model for young people moving from the Seoul metropolitan area to the regions, aimed at easing the burden of initial costs such as settlement funds, housing stability, and start-up and livelihood finance.

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