Rival parties each announced a set of measures Thursday aimed at addressing the country’s critically low birthrate as they gear up for April’s parliamentary elections.
The ruling People Power Party (PPP) focused on guaranteeing parental leave also for fathers, and newly establishing a population ministry to oversee the country’s downward demographic spiral.
The country’s fertility rate — the number of children expected to be born to a woman over her lifetime — fell to an all-time low of 0.78 in 2022, well below the replacement level of 2.1 needed to keep the country’s population stable at 51.5 million.
“The gap in parenting burdens among couples and the gap between small and large businesses are related, and resolving these gaps is the first step toward addressing the low birth rate issue,” the PPP said.
The PPP said it will first mandate providing one-month paid parental leave not only for mothers but also for fathers.
Childcare leave will be newly implemented, allowing parents to take paid leave for
up to five days every year when their children, aged up until the third grade of elementary school, are sick.
The monthly salary for parental leave will be expanded from the current maximum of 1.5 million won (US$1,120) to 2.1 million won, and spouses will also be eligible for parental leave when their wives are pregnant.
The PPP further proposed establishing a new population ministry to oversee low birth rate issues, in line with President Yoon Suk Yeol’s campaign pledge to abolish the gender ministry.
Meanwhile, the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) proposed more dramatic measures by providing various subsidies and perks, such as offering rented housing for couples with multiple babies.
“The fertility rate is said to drop to 0.5 two years after. This is an unimaginable figure,” Chairman Lee Jae-myung said, adding that the DP’s latest measures, named a “dream package,” focus on enticing more young people to get married, have babies and raise them.
Among the most notable measures is to provide young
couples with houses in the public rental system when they have two or more babies.
Citing rising real estate prices as one of the causes behind young people being reluctant to get married, such houses will be provided for up to 10 years after their marriage.
Additionally, up to 100 million won in low-interest loans will be issued for new couples, regardless of their income or assets, for up to 10 years. Both the interest rate and the amount will be deducted when they have babies.
Cash payouts of 200,000 won per child aged from 8 to 17 will be provided, and an additional 100,000 won will be provided for every child into a fund account until the child turns 18.
Child care services will also be provided to every family, regardless of their income, and single parents will receive extra vouchers.
The DP said it expects such measures to entail around 28 trillion won annually, which is around the same amount of 30 trillion won currently poured every year for measures to tackle the problem.
Source: Yonhap News
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