Ganghwa County, Incheon's First Dedicated Population Department Shows Visible Results

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Choi Ki-ho] Ganghwa County is achieving visible results following the establishment of a dedicated population department through organizational restructuring, a first for Incheon City.

In February of this year, amid nationwide population decline and the crisis of regional extinction, the county established the 'Population Growth Director' division, a dedicated organization for population policy implementation, to overcome the limitations of the previous system in which population policies were dispersed across multiple departments.

This was a preemptive measure in line with the launch of the central government's 'Population Strategy Planning Division,' representing an administrative system overhaul to strategically oversee and coordinate population policies.

Since the establishment of the division, the county has achieved results in securing national and city budgets for population-related matters, discovering new policies, and advancing projects across all areas. It is being evaluated as demonstrating the effectiveness of the dedicated organization through continuous achievements in various public competitions and financial projects.

Such achievements are attributed to the dedicated organization performing unified roles from addressing current issues to securing resources and executing policies. The dedicated department is showing results by carefully analyzing policy directions from the central government and Incheon City, and focusing on strategic responses tailored to those directions.

■ Regional Extinction Response Fund Achieves S-Grade Rating, First in Greater Seoul Area... Securing 8.8 Billion Won in Project Expenses

The most notable achievement is being selected for S-grade rating—a first in the Greater Seoul area—in the Regional Extinction Response Fund category, securing a total of 8.8 billion won in project expenses next year, an increase of 1.6 billion won compared to the previous year. This achievement was brought about as a result of comprehensively managing the entire process from strategy development to project planning and evaluation response.

Additionally, the county is overseeing special development projects for special circumstance areas, which account for a significant portion of county finances, serving as a key management axis for major subsidiary funding sources.

The county established a detailed budget management system by regularly holding progress report meetings in the first and second halves of the year for all Regional Extinction Response Funds and special circumstance area development projects, monitoring implementation status and performance by project.

■ 'Hometown Love Donation Program' Shows 69% Increase Year-Over-Year... Exceeding 200 Million Won Achievement

As a result of the Population Growth Director comprehensively managing and intensively overseeing the Hometown Love Donation Program, donations as of December this year increased by 69% or more compared to the previous year, exceeding 200 million won.

The growth of the Hometown Love Donation Program is significant in that it supplements the poor finances of population-declining regions and establishes a foundation for the county to autonomously promote policies.

The county expanded private platforms enabling participation in hometown love donations and newly developed experiential return gifts, implementing strategies differentiated from other local governments. Furthermore, it improved the publicity and donation management systems.

Based on these achievements, the county plans to implement three 'Hometown Love Fund Projects' totaling 120 million won next year.

■ Newly Securing City Budget for Next Year... Expanding Project Target by Twofold

The rural and fishing village study program support project is another area where the effects of establishing the dedicated organization are distinctly visible.

The county entered into an agreement with the Incheon Metropolitan Office of Education and implemented the rural and fishing village study program for the first time this year, while newly securing city budget from Incheon for next year.

Through this, on a stable financial foundation, the county can expand the project scale, operating it for 40 households next year, double that of this year.

Notably, the participant household satisfaction survey showed an average of 87%, receiving positive evaluations from both parents and students. This is evaluated as an achievement demonstrating the potential for the rural and fishing village study program to go beyond a simple experiential policy and lead to actual settlement and expansion of the related population.

■ Improving Living Infrastructure and Youth Policies Strengthen Population Foundation

Improvements to the living environment, which serves as the foundation for population inflow, are also noteworthy.

The county identified the status of vacant houses within the county through a 'Vacant House Status Survey Project' this year and plans to systematically manage related data going forward.

Based on this, the county implemented the 'Vacant House Improvement Support Project,' a Ministry of the Interior and Safety subsidized project, for the first time this year, completing improvements on vacant houses that had raised residential environment and safety concerns, driving substantial residential environment improvements.

Additionally, for youth, the county operated the 'Youth Start-up Seedling Mentoring Program,' which garnered significant response. Regional start-up experts and representatives of well-known cafes in the county participated as mentors, sharing actual start-up experience and supporting the revitalization of the youth start-up ecosystem.

■ All-Out Efforts to Promote Medium- to Long-Term Population Strategy Centered on Dedicated Department

The county plans to continue strengthening the 'population policy control tower' function centered on the Population Growth Director and pursue medium- to long-term population strategies encompassing the expansion of resident, related, and transient populations.

To this end, in October, the county hosted the 'National Project Response Population and Future Strategy Seminar,' a first among local governments nationwide, proactively exploring Ganghwa County's future vision including response to regional extinction, regional industry development, culture and tourism, and peace economy special zone promotion strategies.

County Governor Park Yong-chul stated, "The population issue is a challenge that cannot be resolved through single projects or one-time policies," and added, "Through the dedicated organization, we will respond strategically and continue to consistently promote population policies that county residents can feel through measurable results and achievements."