Time to map out fundamental and comprehensive package
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has designated 89 cities, counties and districts nationwide as "depopulation areas" that are in danger of disappearing owing to population decline. The designated areas will receive 1 trillion won ($850 million) in annual subsidies over the next decade for job creation. The areas will also be given additional points during reviews for state projects amounting to 2.56 trillion won.
This is the first time that the central government has declared specific regions in danger of disappearing due to depopulation. The designation is long overdue, given that the country is struggling with a decline in childbirths and the migration of rural residents to the capital region.
The areas include 16 cities and counties each in South Jeolla Province in the southwest and North Gyeongsang Province in the southeast. The list also includes 12 in Gangwon Province, 11 in South Gyeongsang, 10 in North Jeolla, nine in South Chungcheong and six in North Chungcheong. Three districts in Busan and two in Daegu were also included.
The risk of population "extinction" is very real. According to the Korea Employment Information Service, the number of regions at risk of this out of 228 cities, counties and districts in the country rose from 83 in 2017 to 93 in 2019 and 105 last year. South Korea reported the first natural decline in population last year as the number of deaths outpaced that of newborns. Around 2060, the country's population might be halved with over 40 percent of the populace aged 65 or older.
The problem of population decline cannot be solved merely with stopgap measures. It's a complicated issue related to jobs, marriage, housing, child-rearing and education. The government has spent a staggering 225 trillion won tackling the low birthrate and population aging crises from 2006 through 2020, but to no avail. It's time for the central government to map out a fundamental and comprehensive package with a sense of crisis that the country itself might face extinction.
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has designated 89 cities, counties and districts nationwide as "depopulation areas" that are in danger of disappearing owing to population decline. The designated areas will receive 1 trillion won ($850 million) in annual subsidies over the next decade for job creation. The areas will also be given additional points during reviews for state projects amounting to 2.56 trillion won.
This is the first time that the central government has declared specific regions in danger of disappearing due to depopulation. The designation is long overdue, given that the country is struggling with a decline in childbirths and the migration of rural residents to the capital region.
The areas include 16 cities and counties each in South Jeolla Province in the southwest and North Gyeongsang Province in the southeast. The list also includes 12 in Gangwon Province, 11 in South Gyeongsang, 10 in North Jeolla, nine in South Chungcheong and six in North Chungcheong. Three districts in Busan and two in Daegu were also included.
The risk of population "extinction" is very real. According to the Korea Employment Information Service, the number of regions at risk of this out of 228 cities, counties and districts in the country rose from 83 in 2017 to 93 in 2019 and 105 last year. South Korea reported the first natural decline in population last year as the number of deaths outpaced that of newborns. Around 2060, the country's population might be halved with over 40 percent of the populace aged 65 or older.
The problem of population decline cannot be solved merely with stopgap measures. It's a complicated issue related to jobs, marriage, housing, child-rearing and education. The government has spent a staggering 225 trillion won tackling the low birthrate and population aging crises from 2006 through 2020, but to no avail. It's time for the central government to map out a fundamental and comprehensive package with a sense of crisis that the country itself might face extinction.
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