Gwangju Youth Policy Rated 'Excellent' for Three Consecutive Years by Office for Government Policy Coordination

Introduction of AI Officer Academy as an Outstanding Case
'Work Experience Dream' and 'Youth Job Savings Program' Receive Positive Reviews

Gwangju Mayor Kang Gijeong is taking a commemorative photo with staff at the lawn square in front of City Hall on the 27th, celebrating the selection of the city as an excellent institution for three consecutive years in the '2024 Youth Policy Implementation Performance Evaluation.' Provided by Gwangju City

Gwangju City's youth policy has been recognized for its excellence in a government evaluation. According to the city on June 30, it was selected as an excellent institution for the third consecutive year in the '2024 Youth Policy Implementation Performance Evaluation' conducted by the Office for Government Policy Coordination.

The 'Youth Policy Implementation Performance Evaluation' has been conducted since 2022 to comprehensively assess the youth policy achievements of central government ministries and all 17 metropolitan and provincial governments. The evaluation aims to enhance the quality of youth policies and improve the quality of life for young people.

This year's evaluation was based on 119 youth policy tasks submitted by the cities and provinces, and was conducted according to four criteria: improvement in the quality of life for young people (50 points), reflection of youth life and environment (30 points), youth participation and initiative (10 points), and youth policy promotion (10 points).

The Office for Government Policy Coordination comprehensively evaluated the performance of each city's and province's representative tasks in seven major areas?employment, housing, education, finance, welfare, culture, and participation/rights?as well as their efforts to communicate with young people during the policy implementation process.

Photo from left) AI Officer Academy Entrance Ceremony and Work Experience Dream Meeting Day. Provided by Gwangju City

The city submitted the following as its representative tasks: for employment, 'Gwangju Youth Work Experience Dream Plus'; for housing, 'Gwangju-Style Job Workers' Housing Cost Support'; for education, 'Gwangju Artificial Intelligence Officer Academy'; for finance, 'Youth Dream Bank'; for welfare, 'Gwangju-Style Youth Job Savings Program'; for culture, 'Cultural Content Professional Training (GCC Officer Academy)'; and for participation/rights, 'Operation of the Gwangju Youth Committee.'

The city showed outstanding results in programs such as 'Work Experience Dream,' which contributed to nurturing talent for strategic industries and raising employment and entrepreneurship rates; the 'Artificial Intelligence Officer Academy,' which trained digital talent; and the 'GCC Officer Academy,' an institution for training cultural professionals. In addition, the 'Youth Dream Bank,' which led the way in establishing a financial safety net for young people, and the operation of the 'Youth Committee,' which laid the foundation for youth participation, were also positively evaluated.

In particular, the Artificial Intelligence Officer Academy was highlighted as an exemplary case, as it provided practical, industry-linked education to about 300 people over 10 months. The evaluation panel showed great interest in the 'Work Experience Dream' project, which invested 7.7 billion won to provide wages and job experience to over 900 people, and the 'Gwangju-Style Youth Job Savings Program,' which helps young people working in small and medium-sized enterprises settle in the region by saving 10 million won over two years.

To share the results of this evaluation with citizens and to strengthen policy promotion, the city will hold a youth policy OX quiz event on the 'Gwangju Youth Integrated Platform' from July 1 to 20. Coffee coupons will be awarded to 475 correct respondents, and the winners will be announced on July 28.

Mayor Kang Gijeong said, "This award is external recognition of the effectiveness and excellence of Gwangju's youth policy," adding, "We will continue to strengthen youth policies linked to strategic industries such as AI, so that Gwangju can become a city where young people want to work and live."