Yoon calls for approaching low birthrate issue from different dimension

Dec 27, 2023, 09:15 am

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President Yoon Suk-yeol attends an opening ceremony for the National Children’s Museum in Sejong, 112 kilometers south of Seoul, on Dec. 26, 2023./ Source: Yonhap News

By AsiaToday reporter Hong Sun-mi

President Yoon Suk-yeol called Tuesday for approaching the issue of South Korea’s low birthrate more seriously and contemplating on the causes and solutions from a different dimension than before.

Yoon made the remark during the Cabinet meeting as the country’s fertility rate experienced another decline despite the government’s efforts to boost its declining population.

“Everyone knows from more than 20 years of experience that collecting all good policies cannot be a countermeasure against low birth rates,” Yoon said. “We need to find out what is necessary to tackle falling birthrate through empirical analysis while providing universal support in order for state incentives for childbirth to be effective.”

Yoon called for fundamental measures, saying, “As many experts attribute the declining birthrate to intense competition, particularly in areas such as education, efforts should be concentrated on addressing and rectifying such problems.”

“Time is running short. I hope that every government agency approaches the issue of low birthrates with extraordinary determination,” he said.

The president also called for the health ministry to come up with measures to improve health insurance premiums, pointing out that retired seniors complain that health insurance premiums have increased even though their income has decreased.

Referring to three key reform tasks in labor, education and national pension, Yoon vowed to continue pursuing their fulfillment in order to raise the nation’s growth potential.

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