Local average income less than one-third
More than half raising children with Korean nationality
A survey found that among Vietnamese multicultural families who left Korea due to divorce or bereavement, 3 out of 10 have a monthly income that does not even reach one-third of the average monthly income of Vietnamese workers, which is 7.1 million dong (385,530 KRW).
More than half of them have children with Korean nationality to support, and it was identified that more than 8 out of 10 want their children to receive education and find employment in Korea, raising calls for government support to stabilize their livelihoods.
According to the '2023 Survey on Overseas Multicultural Families from Vietnam' by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, obtained by Newsis on the 15th, the survey was conducted from September last year to January this year targeting 161 marriage migrant women married to Korean men and their 130 children.
The average age of these women was 37, and they returned to Vietnam after marriage in Korea due to divorce, bereavement, or separation. They reside in northern Vietnam’s Haiphong and southern areas including Can Tho, Vinh Long, Hau Giang, Ca Mau, and Bac Lieu.
The economic situation of Vietnamese wives, who account for 27.6% of international marriages in Korea, after leaving Korea was poor. Among the 161 marriage migrant women, 36 (22.4%) reported having no monthly income, and 18 said it was less than 2 million dong (108,200 KRW). The largest group, 43.5%, earned between 2 million and 5 million dong (275,000 KRW), confirming that more than half of the marriage migrant women live on less than the local average monthly income.
Most of them had difficulty finding stable jobs, and more than half (64.7%) had children to support. One child accounted for 51.6%, and two children for 11.2%. The average age of the children was 13 years old, with 52.3% holding Korean nationality, 27.3% Vietnamese nationality, and 20.3% dual nationality. The proportion of women who responded that they personally raised their children was 82.4%.
Among them, 86.8% (92 children) responded that they were attending school normally, but the remaining 14 children were either not currently attending or had never attended school.
Among marriage migrant women raising children, 80.4% (78 women) hoped their children would receive education in Korea, and 85.4% (82 women) wanted their children to find employment in Korea.
Along with this survey, in-depth interviews were conducted, interviewing both the children and their caregivers who returned to Vietnam. The United Nations Human Rights Policy Center, a nonprofit organization that conducted the survey together with the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, urged the establishment of overseas multicultural family policies for their stable residence and education based on the survey results. They especially highlighted the payment of child allowances and emergency medical support as key tasks.
The center stated, "Currently, returned marriage migrant women do not receive child allowances from Korea, so financial support that can directly help Korean-Vietnamese children is necessary," adding, "The payment of child allowances may also help identify returned women and their children who have not been discovered until now." They also said, "The government should make efforts to grasp the scale of returned women and Korean-Vietnamese children," and "A realistic government-level consideration is needed regarding the education and career paths of Korean-Vietnamese children with Korean nationality."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
