South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on Wednesday declared a ???demographic national emergency??? amid growing concerns about the Asian country???s record-low birth rate.<\/p>\n
Yoon issued the declaration at a meeting of the presidential committee on low birth and aging population, vowing to run a pan-government response system until the low birth issue is overcome, according to the presidential office.<\/p>\n
The country???s total fertility rate, or an average number of children a woman is expected to bear in lifetime, reached a record low of 0.72 in 2023, far below the replacement level of 2.1 required to maintain the current population.<\/p>\n
The ministry of demographic strategy and planning will be set up as a ???control tower,??? which will be led by deputy prime minister for social affairs to draw up policies on low birth, aged society and immigration in the long run.<\/p>\n
Yoon said his government will focus on three pillars: balancing work and life, providing public childcare service, and offering preference to purchase houses.<\/p>\n
For the work-life balance, the government will expand paternity leave and relevant allowances with an aim of raising the rate of paternity leave from the current 6.8 percent to 50 percent.<\/p>\n
Public childcare service will be provided for children aged 3-5 free of charge, while expanding after-school programs at elementary schools.<\/p>\n
Households with newborn babies will be given priority to buy houses, while offering low-interest loans to newlyweds.?????<\/p>\n