By Kim Se-jeong
About 70 percent of adopted children in Korea are girls, government data showed Thursday.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 483 girls were adopted, whereas only 203 boys found new families.
The gender preference increased from the year before. Almost 64 percent of adoptees were female in 2012.
Officials say the increasing preference for girls mirrors a change in the perception of women in society.
"When we ask prospective parents why they want to adopt a child now, almost always they answer it's to have a family experience," said Kim Byung-su, a social worker with Holt International Children's Service, during a telephone interview with The Korea Times, Thursday.
Kim said the same trend is being shown in the work of Holt International.
"Girls are preferred so there is a long list of families looking to adopt them. On the other hand, male adoptees are less frequently picked, and tend to have to wait longer for a new family."
Unwanted male children are eventually adopted overseas, increasing the number of boys going to foreign parents ― last year, 192 were male, compared to 42 females.
Kim Moon-jung, a policy research and development officer at the Korea Adoption Services said the trend reflects changes in social values.
"Now, it's no longer expected to expect your son to look after you when you get older," Kim said.
A sign of changing social values in gender is more visible. Girls are preferred by young couples who regard sons as harder to raise, and quicker to detach emotionally from their parents in adulthood.
About 70 percent of adopted children in Korea are girls, government data showed Thursday.
According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 483 girls were adopted, whereas only 203 boys found new families.
The gender preference increased from the year before. Almost 64 percent of adoptees were female in 2012.
Officials say the increasing preference for girls mirrors a change in the perception of women in society.
"When we ask prospective parents why they want to adopt a child now, almost always they answer it's to have a family experience," said Kim Byung-su, a social worker with Holt International Children's Service, during a telephone interview with The Korea Times, Thursday.
Kim said the same trend is being shown in the work of Holt International.
"Girls are preferred so there is a long list of families looking to adopt them. On the other hand, male adoptees are less frequently picked, and tend to have to wait longer for a new family."
Unwanted male children are eventually adopted overseas, increasing the number of boys going to foreign parents ― last year, 192 were male, compared to 42 females.
Kim Moon-jung, a policy research and development officer at the Korea Adoption Services said the trend reflects changes in social values.
"Now, it's no longer expected to expect your son to look after you when you get older," Kim said.
A sign of changing social values in gender is more visible. Girls are preferred by young couples who regard sons as harder to raise, and quicker to detach emotionally from their parents in adulthood.
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