Gender ministry to focus on tangible improvements for everyday life

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced Thursday that it will roll out a range of measures aimed at bringing tangible changes to everyday life.

The ministry was expanded and reorganized on Oct. 1 last year with a broader mandate to promote gender equality for both women and men and ensure equal rights and opportunities regardless of gender.

“Over the past year, we focused on rebuilding the foundation for gender equality policies and bringing government support closer to those in need,” Gender Equality and Family Minister Won Min-kyung said. “In our second year, we will focus on delivering tangible changes that people can feel in their daily lives.”

The ministry will prioritize protecting victims’ rights amid changes to the criminal justice system, including by expanding free legal assistance from the early stages of investigations.

It will also step up efforts to combat digital sex crimes, including deepfake sexual abuse material. It plans to strengthen regulations across the entire process, from the distribution and use of tools used to create such content to its circulation online.

Authorities will also intensify efforts to shut down websites distributing illegal sexual content through faster blocking, criminal investigations and requests to hosting providers to suspend their services.

The ministry will also expand support for victims of stalking and dating violence, including legal assistance from the early stages of investigations and additional housing support. It will also double the number of investigators receiving training to prevent secondary victimization from 2,500 to 5,000.

The ministry also plans to expand specialized support for families with migrant backgrounds from four locations this year to 20 in 2027, offering assistance with emotional well-being, settlement and self-reliance.

The expansion will come under its broader initiative, which aims to provide support regardless of family type or stage of life. Services will range from relationship education and support for single-person households to tailored case management and emergency assistance for families in crisis.

As part of broader efforts to promote gender equality, the ministry plans to introduce an employment equality disclosure system requiring companies to make public key indicators of gender disparities in the workforce.

The system will require companies to disclose gender gaps in employment and pay, as well as the use of work-family balance programs, with the aim of encouraging them to identify and address disparities voluntarily.

The scheme will expand the existing disclosure system, currently being piloted at public institutions, to private companies in phases based on company size. The ministry will also seek to revise the Framework Act on Gender Equality to provide a legal basis for the expansion.

In addition, the ministry plans to take its free menstrual product program nationwide in 2027 following a pilot program in 12 local government areas this year. Public facilities in participating districts and counties have installed dispensers to make menstrual products readily available.

“The expansion of the ministry has underscored the public’s high expectations,” Won said. “We will strengthen its authority and standing so it can fully carry out its responsibilities.”