South Korea shifts youth policy focus toward direct investment in young people

The government has begun discussions on restructuring youth policy spending, shifting the emphasis from subsidies to businesses toward direct investment in young people. The plan is to redesign policy covering the full arc of young people's lives — from securing a quality first job and building assets to housing, entrepreneurship and marriage — and incorporate the changes into next year's budget and a medium-to-long-term national development strategy.

The Ministry of Planning and Budget held a "Youth Policy Expert Forum" Friday at the Korea Press Center in Seoul to discuss the current state of policy and the direction of fiscal investment across five areas: employment, startups, assets, housing and marriage. Participants included specialists from the Korea Labor Institute, the Korea Institute of Finance, the Korea Venture Business Association, the Korea Housing Finance Corp. and the Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs.

Experts at the forum argued that youth challenges should be understood not simply as a jobs shortage but as a structural problem in which instability accumulates across education, labor market entry, housing, asset formation and marriage.

On employment, the shortage of quality entry-level positions and the growing preference among employers for experienced hires were identified as the main barriers to young people establishing themselves in the labor market. Experts proposed introducing a "career-building package" for young people joining small and medium-sized enterprises, bundling job training, skills development and support for housing and commuting costs. They also called for shifting the current model — centered on employment subsidies paid to companies — to one that delivers support directly to young workers.

On startups, the low survival rate of youth-founded ventures and insufficient follow-on support were flagged as key problems. Experts said investment-based and conditional support should be expanded over simple subsidies, with subsequent assistance tied to performance. They also proposed policies to fill the gaps before and after launch, including pre-startup market validation support, living-cost assistance, combined housing and startup programs, and improved access to early-stage capital in regional areas.

On asset formation, experts said the gap between those with and without real estate or parental wealth was deepening inequality among young people. They called for tailored asset-building support that accounts for individual income, employment status and debt levels, stronger links to existing financial products such as youth individual savings accounts, and expanded financial counseling and education.

On housing, experts noted that while youth housing policy has expanded in various ways, it has not been sufficiently connected to the actual paths young people take through life. Discussions covered upgrading "My Home," a residential welfare platform, and linking a track record of on-time repayment on jeonse loans to subsequent financial support.

On marriage, job insecurity, rising housing prices and the burden of building assets were cited as the main factors discouraging young people from marrying and having children. Experts recommended extending youth asset-building programs to cover childhood and strengthening childcare services to reduce the costs of child-rearing and private education.

"This is the golden moment to make bold and sweeping investment in the young generation that will lead South Korea 20 years from now," Planning and Budget Minister Park Hong-keun said. "We will actively reflect the proposals from this forum in next year's government budget and the medium-to-long-term national development strategy."