Hapcheon-gun Promotes Smart Pregnancy and Childbirth Policies for a Hopeful Future

County Governor Kim Yoon-cheol: "We Will Promote a Birth-Friendly
Environment Development Project"

Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam Province, recently welcomed two mothers who gave birth to their sixth child, bringing congratulations from the community and injecting new vitality into the local society. The county awarded the county governor’s commendation to these two families as exemplary multi-child households for contributing to the promotion of childbirth encouragement.

The number of births in Hapcheon-gun was 137 in 2019, but has been declining to 97 in 2022 and 62 in 2023, with the total fertility rate sharply dropping from 1.01 in the previous year to 0.64.

Accordingly, the county has prioritized creating a healthy pregnancy and childbirth environment, discovering systematic and multifaceted support projects from pregnancy preparation to postnatal infant and maternal health support to overcome the low birthrate crisis.

Happy Pregnancy and Childbirth Pregnant Women's Day Campaign.

Hapcheon-gun provides up to 3 million KRW per childbirth for postpartum care expenses to reduce the economic burden on childbirth families and promote maternal health. This support is the highest level nationwide, far exceeding the 500,000 to 1 million KRW support levels of neighboring cities and counties, broadly covering costs used for maternal health recovery and management.

For families who do not meet existing criteria, such as weekend couples or those with children attending special schools, the county partially amended the Ordinance on Pregnancy and Childbirth Support in Hapcheon-gun on September 26, shortening the residency requirement from one year to six months to allow more childbirth families to receive support.

As a childbirth vulnerable area, Hapcheon-gun lacks maternal and newborn health care providers and professionals, so for families struggling with postpartum recovery and newborn care, the county additionally supports up to 1 million KRW from county funds, covering 90% of transportation costs and service copayments for health care workers.

Furthermore, by revising the ordinance’s support conditions from “families where both spouses and existing children have resided in Hapcheon-gun for six months prior to the newborn’s birth” to “families where either the father or mother has been registered as a resident in Hapcheon-gun for six months prior,” it is expected that nearly all childbirth families will be eligible for support.

Hapcheon-gun also supports residents diagnosed with infertility by covering costs for in vitro fertilization (IVF), artificial insemination procedures, and examinations, providing support for up to 20 IVF attempts and up to 5 artificial insemination attempts.

The county is currently requesting social security consultations to strengthen support for infertile couples by abolishing income criteria and increasing support amounts, and plans to further expand support through ordinance amendments based on the consultation results.

County Governor Kim Yoon-cheol stated, “Childbirth is an important factor that determines not only individual happiness but also the future of our society. Our goal is to reduce the burden of child-rearing and create a foundation where dreams can grow.” He added, “We will continue to do our best to raise the birthrate in our county and help more families raise their children happily through various pregnancy and childbirth policies and programs.”