Jeonbuk Province, Reform of Childcare Support System for Daycare Centers

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Seon-gang] Jeonbuk Province announced on the 17th that it will introduce an automatic electronic attendance system to improve the quality of childcare at daycare centers in accordance with the reorganization of the childcare support system, and will increase support for the Nuri Curriculum parental burden differential childcare fees from March to reduce the burden on parents.

The childcare support system distinguishes childcare hours between basic childcare (from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and extended childcare (from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.).

The province expects that from next month, with the childcare support system divided into basic and extended childcare, extended childcare fees and dedicated teacher personnel expenses will be supported, enabling automatic management of all daycare children’s arrival and departure times through the electronic attendance system.

When a dedicated teacher is separately assigned during extended childcare hours, childcare teachers will be able to use their working hours after basic childcare ends for other tasks such as childcare preparation or as break time.

In particular, considering dual-income and care demands, by assigning dedicated teachers to extended childcare classes formed based on all-day class qualifications for households with infants and toddlers requiring long hours of childcare, children and parents using extended childcare hours are expected to be able to use daycare centers for long hours with peace of mind.

Separately, Jeonbuk Province will additionally support meal and snack costs by 5,000 to 7,000 KRW per month to provide balanced meals and quality snacks at daycare centers. To reduce the burden on parents, the differential childcare fee paid by parents of children aged 3 to 5 in daycare centers not supported by government personnel expenses (private, home-based, etc.) will also be increased by 20,000 KRW to 35,000 KRW.

Gu Hyung-bo, Director of the Welfare, Women and Health Bureau, said, “Through the reorganization of the childcare support system, we will actively support improving teachers’ working conditions and increasing satisfaction for parents and children using daycare centers.”