Seongnam City Recruiting 400 Participants for First Half of the Year 'Solomon's Choice' Event

A Meeting Place for Single Men and Women
Schedules Confirmed for Sessions 1 to 4 Out of Eight Events This Year

Seongnam City in Gyeonggi Province announced on April 22 that it will be recruiting 400 participants (200 men and 200 women) for the first half of this year's 'Solomon (SOLO MON)' Choice event, with applications open from April 25 to May 9.

Seongnam City is recruiting 400 participants for the 'Solomon's Choice' 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th events. Photo by Seongnam City - September 7, 2024, Tap Public Pangyo Branch.

Now in its third year, this event is designed to facilitate meetings between single young men and women. The city has confirmed the schedule for the first to fourth sessions out of a total of eight planned for this year and has issued a recruitment notice.

Each session will accommodate 100 participants (50 men and 50 women).

The schedule and themes for the events are as follows: May 25 at Italian restaurant Hello Audrey (Unjung-dong) with a "Soft and Cozy Busking Performance"; May 31 at Mexican restaurant Gamsung Taco Pangyo Branch (Sampyeong-dong) with a "French Street Stroll"; June 1 at Gamsung Taco Pangyo Branch with a "Souvenir Gift Mission Date"; and June 8 at Militopia Hotel (Wirye-dong) with a "School Uniform Party."

To encourage natural interaction, a professional MC will lead programs such as ice-breaking activities, dating coaching, dinner parties, couple games, one-on-one conversations, wine standing parties, and "some-matching" (potential couple matching).

This event is open to unmarried men and women who are registered residents of Seongnam or work at a company in the area, aged 27 to 39 (born between 1985 and 1997), including self-employed individuals and freelancers.

Applications can be submitted via the Seongnam City website (Citizen Participation → Application Submission, search for 'SOLO MON') or by visiting the Women's and Family Division office on the 6th floor of the West Building at City Hall.

Required documents include an application form (with photo), certificate of employment, and a copy of resident registration.

Applicants may apply for multiple sessions (1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th), and those who participated in 2023 are also eligible to apply.

If the number of applicants exceeds the available spots, participants will be selected by lottery.

As part of its policy to encourage marriage among single young men and women, Seongnam City held a total of 13 Solomon's Choice events in both 2023 and last year.

Of the 610 couples who participated, 288 couples (47.2%) were successfully matched, and four couples went on to get married.

This event has attracted attention from domestic and international media as an "innovative low birthrate response policy," with major coverage by The New York Times (NYT, August 7, 2023), The Straits Times of Singapore (ST, September 30, 2023), Reuters of the UK (November 27, 2023), The Boston Globe of the US (May 14, 2024), US media group Bloomberg (November 1, 2024), and the BBC of the UK (December 23, 2024).