Jung Min-ho has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2012, mostly covering social and political issues. He currently belongs to the Politics & City Desk where he covers topics such as health, labor and human rights. Prior to joining the team, he was responsible for covering North Korea and sports. His article about a biosecurity breach of Middle East respiratory syndrome won him an award from the Korea Science Journalists Association in 2016. He is also the co-author of the book, "Medical Pioneers of Korea" (2019). He served as the head of the international relations committee at the Journalists Association of Korea from 2021 to 2023.
For first time, more people are living inside Seoul capital area than outside
Seoul. / Gettyimagesbank
By Jung Min-ho
By Jung Min-ho
The Seoul capital area is more crowded than ever, with more people living inside Gyeonggi region than outside out it.
Data from the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS) show that 50.001 percent of the country's population lives in Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province.
The number of Seoul residents has gradually fallen in recent years to 9.72 million in 2019. But meanwhile, Gyeonggi Province's population increased to nearly 13.24 million; Incheon's was 2.95 million.
According to KOSIS, overpopulation in the capital area has become increasingly serious. In 1970, 28.7 percent of the country's population lived there, but this rose to 42.8 percent in 1990 and to 49.2 percent in 2010.
Following the release of the data, civic groups criticized the government for not doing enough about the situation.
“It is a major crisis that 11.8 percent of the country's land area accounts for more than half its population,” they said in a statement Sunday. “All the resources are concentrated in the capital area … It is getting ever more serious with policymakers pushing to dissolve more greenbelt zones.
“President Moon Jae-in may have a will to solve the problem but has not been able to deliver it, following a decade of conservative rule that focused on developing the capital area and concentrating the power … The government should push harder for balanced development and decentralization.”