Prime Minister Han: "The Last Golden Time for Reversing Low Birthrate in the Next 10 Years"

"A Task That Must Be Solved for National Survival"

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is presiding over the Cabinet meeting held at the Government Complex Sejong on the morning of the 14th.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo stated on the 14th, "Considering the population structure and changing trends in our country, the next 10 years represent the last golden time to reverse the low birthrate."

At the Cabinet meeting held at the Government Sejong Complex that day, Prime Minister Han explained, "The low birthrate issue is a challenging task that cannot be resolved in a short period, but it is a problem that must be solved for the survival of the nation."

He added, "As President Yoon Seok-yeol announced at the 2nd anniversary press conference last week, the government plans to establish a provisional 'Low Birthrate Response Planning Department' at the deputy prime minister level to elevate the low birthrate issue to a national agenda and to consistently promote comprehensive policies from a mid- to long-term perspective."

Earlier, at the 2nd anniversary press conference on the 10th, President Yoon Seok-yeol revealed plans to upgrade the Low Fertility and Aging Society Committee to the Low Birthrate Response Planning Department and to have the minister of the Low Birthrate Department serve as the Deputy Prime Minister for Social Affairs.

Prime Minister Han emphasized again, "We will do our best to create momentum to reverse the rapidly worsening low birthrate trend within the current administration's term. To achieve this, not only the government but the entire society must join forces. I ask for the interest and participation of all social actors, including the National Assembly, the business community, religious groups, and civil society."

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Han also mentioned the recent incident where, due to errors in the government's online civil service 'Government24,' some civil certificates were issued to others, resulting in the leakage of personal information of about 1,000 cases.

He expressed, "It is very regrettable that another problem occurred shortly after establishing measures to prevent recurrence following the suspension of administrative services," and added, "especially, the 'Next-Generation Local Tax Revenue Information System,' launched in February, has caused significant inconvenience to both civil petitioners and responsible officials. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Science and ICT, along with related departments, should redouble their efforts to ensure the stability and reliability of the IT systems."