In-kind welfare provided by the government is increasing in the medical sector but decreasing in the education and childcare sectors, according to an analysis of 17 ministries' 2023 in-kind welfare projects. This trend appears to reflect the impact of low birth rates and an aging population. According to the analysis, the total number of in-kind welfare projects this year is 1,745, a decrease of 24 from 1,769 last year. The number of projects increased in the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety but decreased in the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. The number of in-kind welfare projects provided by the Ministry of Health and Welfare increased by 28 to 309, and those provided by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety increased by 13 to 55. On the other hand, the number of projects provided by the Ministry of Education decreased by 26 to 224, and those provided by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family decreased by 18 to 104. By sector, in-kind welfare projects in the medical sector increased by 41 to 591, while those in the education sector decreased by 30 to 422 and those in the childcare sector decreased by 12 to 123. Experts say that the increase in in-kind welfare projects in the medical sector is due to the increasing demand for medical services for the elderly. An official from the Ministry of Health and Welfare said, "The decrease in in-kind welfare projects in the education and childcare sectors is due to the decrease in the number of children due to low birth rates."

The government's current welfare delivery, which includes medical services, is increasing while support for education and childcare is decreasing, according to the Ministry of Government Legislation. This trend is attributed to the effects of low birth rates and an aging population, as analyzed by the National Statistics Office.

In the 2024 statistics on social welfare transfers, the average household received 926,000 won in social welfare transfers, a 0.4% increase compared to the previous year. Social welfare transfers encompass free meals, free childcare, and medical expense assistance provided by the government in lieu of cash.

Social welfare transfers represent 12.5% of the average household income (7,427,000 won), which is a significant subsidy from the government. When examining the proportion of each sector, the medical sector accounted for 52.8% (488,000 won) of the total, a 1.6% increase compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, education and childcare sectors each saw a 1.6% and 0.3% decrease, respectively, with education at 40.7% (377,000 won) and childcare at 3.5% (32,000 won) of the total.

The National Statistics Office has been reporting these findings since 2022, revealing a persistent pattern of increasing medical sector spending while education and childcare spending trend downward. Lee Chang-jin, a statistician from the Ministry's Welfare Statistics department, explained that as the population ages, the proportion of medical spending will continue to rise, while the decline in child and young adult populations will lead to a decrease in education and childcare spending.

Notably, for households in the bottom 20% of income, social welfare transfers make up nearly half of their total income. The bottom 1st percentile households received 727,000 won in social welfare transfers, accounting for 46.8% of their average household income (1,552,000 won). Additionally, 88.0% of bottom 1st percentile social welfare transfers were allocated to the medical sector.

In contrast, households in the top 20% of income experienced the highest absolute amount of social welfare transfers, with 1,253,000 won (7.2% of their average household income) allocated to the education sector, which had the largest share among these households.