[Minseon 8th Term Naju-si Customized Welfare]③ There Is Joy in Learning with 'Premium Education'

Year-Round Part-Time Childcare Service in Bitgaram-dong

Selected for School Complex Facility Contest... New Elementary School Established in Innovation City

Support for Deposit-Free Rental Housing for Young Workers from Other Regions

First Lifelong Learning Voucher Program in the Province Implemented for 2,500 People

Asia Economy reports on the welfare policies for different social groups under the 8th term of Naju City’s administration in three installments. The first installment covered tailored welfare policies for the elderly in Naju, which has entered a super-aged society (September 18 issue). The second installment introduced policies related to pregnancy, childbirth, women-friendly initiatives, and care for the disabled, focusing on socially vulnerable groups such as women and people with disabilities (September 25 issue). The final third installment covers policies for future generations, specifically children and adolescents.

Naju City is focusing on overcoming low birth rates and creating a city that is good for having and raising children. To support dual-income couples, Naju opened the province’s first hourly childcare center offering year-round care services. Additionally, the city established the Future Education Support Center, which utilizes local educational resources to provide students with career and experiential learning opportunities, responding to diverse future educational demands.

The city’s support project for rental housing without deposits for young people moving to Naju for employment also draws attention. Furthermore, the lifelong learning voucher program, which enriches young people’s quality of life, is being implemented for the first time this year.

▲ Jeonnam’s First ‘365-Day Childcare’ Hourly Childcare Center Opens

The biggest concern for dual-income parents is childcare. To create a childcare environment where children can be safely entrusted, Naju City provides childcare services every day, including weekdays, weekends, and holidays.

So-called ‘365-day hourly childcare service’ was introduced for the first time among local governments in Jeonnam Province. Hourly childcare has been a key initiative promoted by Mayor Yoon Byung-tae, who pledged to “expand support for infant and toddler facilities to create a safe childcare environment.”

The Kinderbrain Daycare Center in Bitgaram-dong was designated as a commissioned childcare facility and opened on October 4. This daycare center provides year-round childcare services when parents need urgent care for their children due to dual-income work schedules, night shifts, hospital visits, or hospitalization.

The service is available for children from six months old up to preschool age. Parents (guardians) can request the service in advance according to nighttime, weekend, or holiday schedules.

The daycare center cares for children from 6 p.m. to 9 a.m. the next day on weekdays, and from 8 a.m. to midnight on weekends and holidays. The usage fee is 3,000 KRW per hour. Kinderbrain Daycare Center is located at 276 Green-ro, Educastle Apartments (Bitgaram-dong), Naju City.

▲ Selected for School Complex Facility Project... Expected to Alleviate Overcrowded Classes in Bitgaram-dong

Bitgaram Innovation City is one of ten innovation cities nationwide and is characterized by a relatively young population with a high proportion of children. As of the end of July, the population under age 9 in Bitgaram-dong was 18.4% of the total population (39,444), more than twice the national average of 8.3%.

The most urgent issue regarding residential conditions in the innovation city is elementary school overcrowding. Among the five planned elementary schools in the city, the establishment of the tentatively named Maeseong Elementary School has been delayed, resulting in Bitnuri Elementary School operating with over 1,400 students in oversized and overcrowded classes. Due to the delay in opening the new school and increasing student numbers, 32 additional classrooms have been built so far. Lunch is served in three shifts.

Since taking office, Mayor Yoon Byung-tae has continuously discussed the establishment of new elementary schools in the innovation city with the provincial education office. Amid this, the plan for a new elementary school gained momentum with the Ministry of Education’s confirmation of the school complex facility project.

Naju City plans to change the land use of a park site in Bitgaram-dong to school land and build a new elementary school with 25 classes. The school will include care spaces and sports facilities accessible to students and citizens, with plans to open as early as 2029.

The total project cost for the school complex facility, including the new elementary school, is expected to be 43.1 billion KRW, with 1.5 billion KRW from Naju City, 38.5 billion KRW from the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education, and 3.1 billion KRW from the Ministry of Education.

▲ New ‘Future Education Support Center’ to Foster Creative Talent

The ‘Future Education Support Center’ was newly established under the 8th term administration with the goal of nurturing global, problem-solving creative talents prepared for future society.

Unlike large cities where aptitude and career-related education demands are met through private academies and private education, the center aims to provide these educational needs at the local government level to bridge the educational gap between the metropolitan area and provincial cities.

Naju City plans to offer customized education in various specialties, aptitudes, career paths, and experiential learning by linking 16 relocated public institutions in the innovation city, specialized high schools such as science high school, foreign language high school, horticulture high school, technical high school, commercial high school, beauty high school, and local industries including energy, agriculture, livestock, and fruit farming.

The center plans to implement programs next year such as the Naju Awareness Project linked to local history, culture, and arts experiences; mentee-mentor programs between students and workers; career schools connected with public, private, industrial, and academic sectors; and student capacity-building and pre-education programs including AI coding and electrical energy classes.

▲ ‘No Deposit, Only Management Fee’ Naju City Supports Rental Housing for Employed Youth

Youth moving to Naju for employment will have the opportunity to live in apartments by paying only monthly management fees without rental deposits. Naju City is actively recruiting tenants for the ‘Employment Youth Rental Housing’ project until October 25.

This project is part of the 8th term youth package policies aimed at solving housing problems for young people (aged 18?45) moving to Naju. Mayor Yoon Byung-tae has prioritized this initiative to attract young populations, alleviate labor shortages in industrial complex companies, and create an attractive Naju that draws youth back.

This year, the city is recruiting tenants for 30 units in total, 15 each in Songwol-dong and Samyoung-dong Booyoung Apartments. The city plans to supply up to 100 rental housing units by next year.

Naju City fully supports the rental deposits for apartments in the original downtown area. Young people aged 18 to 45 from other regions who meet the eligibility criteria can move in without bearing the burden of jeonse (lump-sum deposit lease) or monthly rent costs, paying only monthly management fees. The basic contract period is two years, with a maximum residence period of four years (one extension).

The city expects this to greatly contribute not only to housing stability for young workers but also to alleviating labor shortages in companies located in industrial and agricultural complexes. In addition to deposit-free rental housing, the city has increased housing support for employed youth living in jeonse or monthly rental housing from 100,000 KRW to 200,000 KRW per month starting this year.

Support for mortgage interest payments for newlyweds and multi-child families has also been raised from 150,000 KRW to 300,000 KRW per month to promote housing stability for young generations.

Moreover, agricultural newcomers receive rural housing purchase funds with loans up to 75 million KRW at 1.5% annual interest, and up to 10 million KRW (with 30% self-payment) for farmhouse repair costs.

▲ Enriched Cultural Life... Province’s First Lifelong Learning Voucher

Naju City is advancing toward becoming a lifelong learning city where any citizen can freely enjoy learning in various fields anytime and anywhere. The ‘Naju愛 Lifelong Learning Voucher,’ first implemented under the 8th term administration, is a new policy to guarantee universal learning rights, making learning a part of daily life.

Mayor Yoon Byung-tae has focused on enriching quality of life through cultural activities, ensuring that life quality can be abundant even outside the metropolitan area or large cities.

Among local governments in Jeonnam Province, Naju City is the first to implement a lifelong learning voucher program. This year, 2,500 citizens receive 150,000 KRW annually in learning expenses (voucher card). The program covers hobbies, liberal arts, sports, crafts, music, art, languages, computers, vocational skills, literacy, and more, allowing individuals to enjoy diverse lifelong learning tailored to their tastes and specialties, enriching their quality of life beyond simple learning.

The city continuously recruits affiliated stores for the voucher card to diversify lifelong learning. Currently, about 400 courses are offered.

Voucher recipients can obtain voucher cards from Gwangju Bank, the contracted financial institution, between September and December, and freely apply for and attend lifelong learning programs registered with the Naju Lifelong Learning Information Center.

Naju = Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Kim Yuk-bong yjm3070@asiae.co.kr