Gyeonggi Province to Promote 103 Projects Over 5 Years for 'A Happier and More Exciting Gyeonggi for Children'

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] Gyeonggi Province will pursue 103 projects over five years, including fostering elementary school sports clubs and systematizing public childcare in preparation for disasters, to achieve 'A Happier and More Exciting Gyeonggi for Children.'

Gyeonggi Province announced on the 16th that it has established the 'First Gyeonggi Province Child Policy Master Plan (2021-2025)' containing these details after deliberation and resolution by the Gyeonggi Province Child Welfare Deliberation Committee.

This master plan is the first mid- to long-term plan in the child welfare sector established in accordance with the 'Ordinance on Child Protection and Welfare Promotion in Gyeonggi Province' amended last year. The plan establishes the direction of child policy by reflecting the characteristics of Gyeonggi Province based on the central government's Child Policy Master Plan (2020-2024).

The province plans to expand existing projects and discover and implement new projects over the next five years in accordance with the policy direction of the master plan.

The First Gyeonggi Province Child Policy Master Plan consists of one goal to realize the vision of 'A Happier and More Exciting Gyeonggi for Children,' four implementation strategies, 12 policy tasks, and 103 detailed tasks. The total project cost for detailed tasks is estimated at approximately 6.93 trillion won (national budget + provincial budget + city and county budget).

The four implementation strategies include ▲realizing children's participation and rights ▲supporting children's healthy development ▲strengthening comprehensive childcare ▲responding to environmental changes in child policy.

Regarding major tasks by implementation strategy, the province will first implement projects that reflect a child-centered perspective in various policies and transform awareness to view 'children as rights subjects.'

New projects are being prepared, including hosting Gyeonggi Province Child Policy Forums that share best practices of local governments and gather expert opinions.

The province will also support various experiential education and elementary school sports club development so that children can enhance their creative problem-solving abilities through enjoyment with a balance between play and learning.

To strengthen the childcare system, the province will continue to operate various childcare facilities and provide support for independence of low-income and facility-protected children who have left care.

Finally, in response to changed child-rearing environments due to COVID-19 and other factors, the province emphasized strengthening support for home child-rearing due to gaps in social care and systematizing public childcare in preparation for disasters.

Lee Soon-neum, Director of the Women and Family Bureau of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "Through the First Child Policy Master Plan, we will seamlessly pursue tasks for realizing children's rights and child protection from a 'child-centered' perspective," and added, "We will make active efforts to create a happy environment where children are respected."