25th Ministerial Meeting on Boosting the Economy
26th Ministerial Meeting on the Economy of 2019
Government Unveils 2nd Round of Measures to Deal with Demographic Changes
Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki presided over the 25h Ministerial Meeting on Boosting the Economy held on November 6, that is, the 26th Ministerial Meeting on the Economy of this year. The 2nd round of framework measures to deal with demographic changes were announced at the meeting, and ways to promote Korean products in K-pop markets were discussed. DPM Hong touched on the 2020 economic policies scheduled to be announced next month at the beginning of the meeting, saying it would be focused on accelerating industrial restructuring, increasing public sector efficiency and improving job market flexibility.
The following is a summary of Deputy Prime Minister Hong’s keynote address.
2020 Economic Policies to be focused on restructuring
As the global economy faces slowing growth with industrial transformation being on the move backed by fast-developing technologies and changing demographic trends, we will also have to deal with the same challenges. The government will never stop pursuing industrial restructuring and reforming the public sector, and will continue working to help the economy regain growth momentum. The 2020 economic policies, scheduled to be announced next month, will reflect these challenges, as well as will contain measures to increase flexibility in the labor market.
2nd round measures to deal with demographic changes
The 2nd round measures contain ways to buffer the effect of a smaller population.
1) Falling school age population
- Prepare for a slowing demand for teachers: Work on the number of teachers needed in the future, as well as on the model for small schools
- Reduce the number of new teachers by controlling enrollments in teacher education programs
- Promote adult education programs in college
2) Falling military population in mandatory service
- Restructure the military: Equip with high-tech and reduce military personnel (to around 500,000 by 2022)
- Phase out mandatory service and adjust alternative civilian service
- Increase female military officers (6.2% to total in 2019 to 8.8% in 2022), and consider requiring naturalized citizens to fulfill military duty
- Adjust the age requirement for petty officers from 27 or older to 29 or older
3) Rural depopulation
- Work on an easy access to public services: Build a system in which those living in rural areas can easily access public services provided in nearby towns, and expand the public healthcare and welfare services provided by visiting nurses and other caregivers
- Set up a joint administrative service among different municipalities for easier access to the service
The 3rd and 4th rounds of measures will be on ageing population and increasing welfare demand, respectively, and is scheduled to be announced this month at this meeting.
Ways to promote Korean products in K-pop markets
The government will work on the following to make the best use of overseas K-pop markets to promote Korean products.
- Promote investment in product development which targets K-pop markets
- Use K-pop concerts as a platform to strengthen existing K-pop markets and promote items, such as cosmetics and games, as well as to expand into new markets, such as the Middle East
- Help Korean products go into large online markets, such as Amazon and Shoppee, and help set up online shopping malls overseas
Please refer to the attached pdf
