Seoul's Commitment to Vulnerable Groups 'Yakjadonghaeng Index' First Released
11% Increase Compared to Base Year... Covers 6 Areas and 50 Indicators
Housing, Safety, Medical & Health Up Over 20%, Livelihood & Care Slightly Up
Oh Se-hoon: "Building a Sustainable Inclusive City with Vulnerable Groups"
The first evaluation results of the 'Yakja Donghaeng Index,' which quantifies how much the core philosophy of the 8th term Seoul city administration, 'Walking Together with the Vulnerable,' has benefited citizens, have been released. Using 2022 as the base year with an index of 100, the overall index rose to 111 last year, an 11% increase, with particularly high policy effectiveness observed in the housing and safety sectors.
According to Seoul City on the 19th, the newly announced 'Yakja Donghaeng Index' was calculated based on 2022, the year when Mayor Oh Se-hoon initiated the 'Walking Together with the Vulnerable' policy. To enhance objectivity and reliability, the performance analysis by the Seoul Institute underwent verification by an external evaluation panel. Most importantly, 100 evaluators with a high understanding of Seoul City policies, including field officials and citizen participation ombudsmen, were appointed to assess performance by sector, conduct on-site inspections of key cases, and review exemplary cases.
Looking closely at the index results by category, among the six areas?▲Housing (125.1) ▲Safety (124.9) ▲Medical & Health (120.1) ▲Livelihood & Care (100.8) ▲Education & Culture (98.4) ▲Social Integration (97.9)?four showed increases while two experienced slight declines. Indices related to 'livelihood' areas directly connected to daily life such as livelihood, housing, and health, as well as the safety sector addressing new social risks like solitary deaths and isolation/withdrawal, mostly rose, indicating that the Yakja Donghaeng policy has strengthened the social safety net.
The area with the highest increase was the 'Housing Index,' which recorded 125.1. The 'Support Scale for Housing Upgrades for Vulnerable Groups' saw the largest rise within the housing sector. The 'Housing Environment Improvement Scale' also increased from 1,937 households last year to 2,694 households.
'Support for Housing Upgrades for Vulnerable Groups' is a project that identifies citizens living in small rooms, goshiwon (cheap dormitories), semi-basements, etc., and helps them relocate to stable residences such as public rental housing. To this end, Seoul City expanded the 'Housing Safety Comprehensive Center,' which was previously operated in 4 autonomous districts, to all 25 districts last year to actively identify eligible individuals. As a result, the support scale increased by 65.6% from 3,001 households in 2022 to 4,969 households in 2023.
The 'Safety' sector also showed significant improvement. The 'Safety Index,' with 7 out of 9 indicators rising, reached 124.9. Among the 50 total indicators, 'Identification and Support for Isolated and Withdrawn Youth,' a newly vulnerable group arising from recent social changes, recorded the highest growth rate (135% increase).
The 'Medical & Health Index' rose to 120.1 with 9 indicators increasing. Support for the mental health of children, adolescents, and youth more than doubled, showing the highest growth among medical and health indicators. The 'Hospital Accompaniment Service' also increased by about 1.3 times.
The 'Education & Culture Index' slightly decreased to 98.4. However, indicators related to reducing educational disparities and providing quality education to marginalized groups, such as 'Seoul Learn' and the 'Lifelong Education Center for Borderline Intellectual Functioning,' increased by more than 6% compared to last year. Seoul City plans to enhance cultural and leisure accessibility and infrastructure through ongoing initiatives like the Seoul Youth Culture Pass, Youth Theater, and museum/art gallery viewing support for special schools, aiming to reduce cultural gaps and actively guarantee cultural enjoyment rights for socially vulnerable groups.
The 'Social Integration Index' also slightly declined to 97.9. Indicators such as 'Seoul Citizens' Volunteer Participation Rate' (7.11% in 2022 → 6.64% in 2023), 'Seoul Citizens' Donation Experience Rate' (29.42% in 2022 → 27.47% in 2023), and 'Seoul Citizens' Awareness Level of Donghaeng' (5.43 points in 2022 → 5.37 points in 2023) showed minor decreases.
Seoul City plans to disclose the comprehensive Yakja Donghaeng Index, the six sector-specific indices, and detailed indicators starting from the end of June. The indices will be managed fairly and transparently through regular updates by timing and occasion. Mayor Oh Se-hoon stated, "The Yakja Donghaeng Index is a citizen-facing promise and a guiding beacon that shows how far Seoul City's efforts for the vulnerable have actually reached. Through systematic operation and performance management of the Yakja Donghaeng Index, we will improve the quality of life evenly across all sectors, detect and resolve social risks early, and create a sustainable, inclusive city Seoul that walks together with the vulnerable."
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