Three Local Governments Selected Nationwide by the Office for Government Policy Coordination
The Only County-Level Designation
Geochang-gun, Gyeongnam Province announced on the 12th that it received a certificate of designation as a Youth-Friendly City of the Republic of Korea from Bang Gi-seon, Director of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, at the Youth-Friendly City Designation Ceremony held at the Government Complex Seoul, hosted by the Office for Government Policy Coordination.
The 'Youth-Friendly City' is a system overseen by the Office for Government Policy Coordination and designated by the Prime Minister, aimed at fostering youth development and capacity building based on youth participation, creating regions that improve the quality of life for youth, and encouraging the spread of such models to other local governments.
Its goal is to disseminate excellent local youth policy cases to other regions through not only education and consulting but also administrative and financial support. Each year, up to three cities, counties, and districts (226 in total), including the Special Self-Governing City (Sejong) and Special Self-Governing Province (Jeju), are selected. The designation period for a Youth-Friendly City is five years, with a total project budget of 1 billion KRW allocated over the five years.
This is the first designation since the Youth-Friendly City system was legislated through the amendment of the Youth Basic Act in September 2023, and Geochang-gun was selected alongside Seoul’s Gwanak-gu and Busan’s Jin-gu. In particular, Geochang-gun was highly evaluated for its potential as a rural-type Youth-Friendly City model by actively communicating among local youth, residents, and public officials using local resources and characteristics to produce tangible youth policy outcomes. Moreover, it is the only designated area among local counties, rural regions, and population-declining areas, which adds to its significance.
Since distributing the Youth-Friendly City guidelines in June, Geochang-gun has actively participated in consulting and briefing sessions with the Office for Government Policy Coordination and the Youth Foundation. Especially, to reflect youth opinions, it conducted preliminary surveys and policy contests, and youth planned and participated throughout all processes including fieldwork and presentation evaluations, fully reflecting local characteristics. Additionally, through a support relay challenge, the entire population’s hopes and determination for becoming a Youth-Friendly City were demonstrated.
During the field evaluation held last December at Geochang Youth Center, Smart Rental Farm, and Youth Mall, the participation of Geochang-gun Governor Gu In-mo, related departments, and Lee Jae-woon, Chairman of the Geochang County Council, as well as discussions about youth living in the region, were recognized as fully showcasing the local characteristics and strengths of Youth-Friendly City Geochang.
Governor Gu In-mo said, “Geochang’s designation as a Youth-Friendly City is a valuable achievement made possible through the joint efforts of National Assemblyman Shin Sung-beom, the Geochang County Council, and Gyeongnam Province, and it is the result of being recognized for the potential to grow sustainably together with youth.” He added, “We will do our best to secure future competitiveness and make Geochang a place where anyone in Korea, especially youth, wants to live and visit.”
Meanwhile, Geochang-gun’s designation as a Youth-Friendly City is expected to become a nationwide exemplary case where hope is held and youth lead the creation of sustainable regions outside of urban areas amid the risk of regional extinction. This is also anticipated to increase the potential for spreading the model to other regions.
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