Naju-si Recruiting Participants for 'Living in the Countryside' Program Until the 24th

Naju City, Jeollanam-do (Mayor Yoon Byung-tae) announced that it is recruiting participants for the "2023 Living in Rural Areas" program until the 24th of this month.

Organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, this project is a policy in the field of returning to farming and rural areas, where urban residents interested in or planning to return to farming or rural living reside in rural villages for 3 to a maximum of 6 months, gaining farming knowledge and directly experiencing rural life through interaction with village residents.

This year, a total of 6 households and 12 participants will be recruited.

Naju City, Experience of Living in Rural Areas Last Year [Photo by Naju City]

Applications are open to any urban resident aged 18 or older living in other cities or regions, and can be submitted by signing up and applying on the Return-to-Farming and Rural Living Comprehensive Center website by the 24th.

The residents of Myeongha Haetgol in Munpyeong-myeon, who have been promoting the project for three years since 2021, are busy preparing to welcome rural return guests.

This village is home to 32 households and 55 residents centered around Myeongha Haetgol Co., Ltd., a social enterprise and village community that has been cultivating indigo, the main raw material for natural dyeing, for five generations.

Reflecting these characteristics, the village has been promoting key projects such as "indigo harvesting," "indigo dyeing experience and education, and product sales," and "cultivating healing food, healing agriculture, and healing gardens."

In particular, through last year’s project, the village was able to renovate the kitchen facilities of the village lodging building, providing a better rural living experience environment for this year’s participants.

During their stay, participants can gain various and unique experiences in rural areas, such as job searching, housing search and decision-making, and participation in resident integration programs.

Accommodation is provided free of charge, and a monthly training allowance of 300,000 KRW per person is also supported.

Choi Kyung-ja, CEO of Myeongha Haetgol Co., Ltd., said, "As we have promoted the project, the villagers’ resistance to outsiders has noticeably decreased, and especially during the busy farming season, participants helped with rural labor, bringing vitality and harmony to the village."

Mayor Yoon Byung-tae said, "I hope this will be a valuable opportunity for urban residents wishing to return to farming and rural living to experience rural life in advance and harmonize with village residents, thereby concretizing their plans for returning to farming and rural living."

He added, "We will do our best to implement step-by-step policies for returning rural areas, including rural vacant house regeneration projects, support for preparation and settlement for returning to farming, and management cost support for income stabilization."

Naju = Kim Yuk-bong, Honam Reporting Headquarters, Asia Economy baekok@asiae.co.kr