South Korea’s Plans To Tackle Population Crisis in 2025

South Korea’s government hopes a slew of new and upcoming policies will make a difference in its fight to reverse a looming population crisis. The nation’s fertility rate, the lowest in the world, dropped further last year, with the average number of expected babies per woman decreasing to 0.72 in 2023 from 0.78 in 2022. The rate needed to sustain a population is 2.1. Newsweek reached out to the South Korean embassy in the U.S. with a written request for comment. Population Free Fall Workplace culture that makes it difficult for new mothers to balance careers and raising children, the rising cost of living in major cities, stagnant wages and increased emphasis among younger South Koreans on balancing their earnings so there’s room for hobbies, self-care and travel are all having an impact. Earlier this month, the country’s ministry of the interior announced the population had reached another grim demographic landmark: One in five South Koreans are now 65 years of age or older, putting it in the ranks of neighboring Japan as what the United Nations considers a “super-aged society,” threatening the country’s long-term economic resilience. The South Korean government has spent upward of $200 billion on initiatives to boost births since 2006, but there appears to be little to show for it. Its Presidential Committee on Aging Society and Population Policy remains cautiously optimistic, saying in a press release last week that central ministries and local governments have met 90 percent of related targets and predicting the fertility rate will have risen to 0.74 this year. New and Upcoming Policies Earlier this month, the committee announced it aimed to have 70 percent of fathers of children aged eight or younger take advantage of parental leave by 2030. That figure would match the percent of mothers of young children who did so in 2022, compared to less than 7 percent of fathers. The new goal is meant to relieve women of some of the burden of raising children, an oft-cited reason for delaying childbirth. South Korea announced a flurry of new and upcoming policies in 2024. However, the government has little to show for it. South Korea announced a flurry of new and upcoming policies in 2024. However, the government has little to show for it. Newsweek Illustration/Canva Other policy moves include making parental leave more flexible. Currently, both mothers and fathers are eligible for up to 12 months of leave that can be spread across three periods. From February, couples who both choose to avail themselves of this leave will see their leave periods extended to 18 months each, spread across up to four periods. That change came after the nation’s finance ministry announced this summer that it would raise the maximum allowance for parental leave to 2.5 million won ($1,800) per month from 1.5 million. Parents can also now apply for a mortgage with a rate between 1.6 percent and 3.3 percent for five years. This rate is about 1-3 percent lower than most bank loans. Other policies being planned include longer periods of leave for women after stillbirth as well as their partners, and expanded and better access to postpartum care. As for employers, government subsidies are in the works to help offset childbirth-related employee absences. Additionally, small to medium sized businesses that are deemed to have “excellent” work-family balance policies will be eligible for tax audit deferrals of up to two years. Political Uncertainty It remains to be seen how the rollout of these initiatives will be affected by the political upheaval resulting from the botched martial law briefly in effect on the orders of now-impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol. Increasingly desperate to reverse what he dubbed a “national emergency,” Yoon called this summer for a new government ministry to oversee population efforts, including on matters related to the birth rate, workforce, immigration and aging. However, legislation necessary for pressing forward with the ministry, originally meant to be launched next year, has stalled in the country’s National Assembly, where it is likely to stay until the political crisis abates. Another casualty of the crisis was the office of the first-ever senior presidential secretary for population policy. You Hye-mi, an economics professor and mom of two whom Yoon tapped for the role in July, resigned among others on December 4, the day after the short-lived martial law period.