UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre Report
Mental Health Ranks 34th Out of 36 Countries, Physical Health 28th
A report has revealed that while the basic academic skills of children and adolescents in South Korea are among the highest in the world, their physical health ranks low and their mental health ranks among the lowest.
Students who have finished their school classes are moving in the academy district. This photo is not directly related to the article.
On May 13 (local time), the Innocenti Research Centre, a child research institute under UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund), released a report titled "Children's Health in an Unpredictable World," which analyzes the welfare status of children and adolescents in developed countries. According to the report, the overall welfare status of Korean children ranked 27th out of 36 countries. In particular, mental health ranked 34th out of 36 countries, placing it among the lowest, and physical health ranked 28th out of 40 countries, also in the lower tier.
In contrast, South Korean children overwhelmingly outperformed their peers in other developed countries in the area of basic academic skills. Basic academic achievement was measured by the percentage of 15-year-old students who possess reading and math skills sufficient for daily life. South Korea recorded 79%, ranking first among the 40 countries surveyed. Ireland followed with 78%, then Japan with 76%, and Estonia with 75%.
South Korea's suicide rate stood in stark contrast to its academic achievement. According to the report, the average suicide rate among 15- to 19-year-olds in South Korea over the past three years (2020?2022) was 10.3 per 100,000 people, ranking fifth among the 42 countries surveyed. The report also noted that this figure represents a significant increase compared to the previous survey.
Along with the suicide rate, South Korea also ranked low in the "life satisfaction" survey, which is part of the "mental health" category. Among the 36 countries, South Korea ranked 30th. In a survey asking 15-year-old students to rate their overall life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, only 65% of Korean students responded with a score of 5 or higher.
Furthermore, South Korea also remained in the lower-middle tier in the "physical health" category. This indicator was measured based on the mortality rate and the proportion of overweight children among those aged 5 to 14 per 1,000 children. While South Korea's child mortality rate was relatively low at 0.7 per 1,000, the obesity rate was 33.9%, ranking seventh highest among 43 countries.
The Innocenti Research Centre stated in the report, "Over the past five years, most countries have seen warning signs of declining life satisfaction and falling academic performance. The proportion of overweight children has also increased." The report went on to point out, "These trends pose significant challenges for OECD and EU countries in providing children with a good childhood or a positive future environment."
Meanwhile, this report was based on child-related data from 2018 to 2022 from organizations such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the World Health Organization (WHO), and UNICEF. To analyze the quality of children's lives, the report examined three main areas?mental health, physical health, and quality of life?using a total of six indicators: life satisfaction, adolescent suicide rate, child mortality rate, proportion of overweight children, academic achievement, and social interaction.
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