Convenience Stores Help Identify and Support At-Risk Youth

Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and Convenience Store Industry Association Sign Agreement to Support At-Risk Youth

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] Convenience stores will play a bridging role in discovering at-risk youth and connecting them to support agencies for protection and assistance.

On the 15th, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced on the 14th that it will sign a non-face-to-face "Business Agreement for Supporting At-Risk Youth" with the Korea Convenience Store Industry Association and CU, GS25, 7-Eleven, Ministop, and C Space 24 to early identify at-risk youth and link them to support agencies.

This business agreement was prepared to strengthen the local community youth safety network by actively involving convenience stores, which are frequented by young people, in supporting youth at risk due to running away, suicide/self-harm, school violence, and other dangers.

Convenience store owners will participate in the 1388 Youth Support Group of the local Youth Counseling and Welfare Center and, upon discovering at-risk youth visiting the store, will connect them to the Youth Counseling and Welfare Center to receive protection and support. The 1388 Youth Support Group is a voluntary private participation organization linked with the Youth Counseling and Welfare Center, consisting of local pharmacies, hospitals, taxis, academies, lawyers, and others, aimed at early detection and support of at-risk youth in the community.

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will provide a staff action guideline for discovering at-risk youth, which it developed and distributed, to convenience stores and will promote government policies for protecting and supporting at-risk youth through over 44,000 convenience stores. They plan to offer online education such as youth human rights training for convenience store employees through the Korea Youth Counseling and Welfare Institute.

The Ministry centers its efforts on 238 Youth Counseling and Welfare Centers, working with essential local safety network institutions to provide counseling, housing, education, and independence support for at-risk youth.

Jeong Young-ae, Minister of Gender Equality and Family, said, "We expect local convenience stores, which are open 24 hours and located throughout neighborhoods, to contribute to early detection and support of youth in crisis," adding, "The Ministry will do its best to protect and support youth by building a more robust safety net so that all young people can grow up safely and brightly."