President Lee “Youth, have we considered them sufficiently?…Elderly policies have increased overwhelmingly”

President Je Nam expressed on the 14th that the government's care for the elderly population is "completely normal" and "continuously expanding," while pondering if enough care was given to the youth. At a 'Professional Roundtable on Reformation of Youth Policy' held at the Blue House, he stressed his intention to change the youth policy direction.

He questioned whether enough consideration had been given to the youth, suggesting that previous policies were often based on the standards of the aging population and questioned whether the current situation warranted this level of care. The president also noted that "failure is the mother of success" and that "young people who challenge are beautiful," but warned that such statements often provoke criticism.

The president highlighted that his main issue with government policies is the 'supply-side thinking', adding that he believes a change in perspective is necessary. He had previously proposed reviewing the youth policy focusing on education, employment, income and assets, housing and marriage as key areas of a young person's life.

At the roundtable, which included 11 youth policy experts, discussions focused on diagnosing problems in youth policies and reforming the national governance to be more youth-friendly. The meeting, which exceeded its planned 90 minutes to 200 minutes, was attended by experts discussing moving youth-related budgets to 'experienced-based' and 'growth-investment' models.

Attendees agreed on the need for 'youth participation' in policy-making and implementation, with many noting that despite the policy's large budget of 30 trillion won, the perceived impact on youth was low.