Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy Launches 'Hug You' Video Contest

[Financial News] The Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy will begin accepting entries for the 'Hug You' national video contest, which centers on the theme of hugs between children and their families, starting from the 3rd. Submissions are open until the 16th of this month.
The contest aims to foster a positive perception of marriage, childbirth, and parenting, while promoting a warm family culture throughout society.
To participate in the 'Hug You' contest, entrants should create a video capturing hugs between children and family members. Any citizen of Korea is eligible to join.
Participants must upload their self-filmed family hug videos to their personal social media channels, such as Instagram or Facebook, and include the designated hashtags. Afterward, they should complete and submit the Google Forms application linked on the committee's website, blog, or social media.
Joo Hyung-hwan, Vice Chairperson of the committee, stated, "I hope this contest will serve as a starting point for reaffirming family happiness and spreading it further."
Since last year, the Presidential Committee on Ageing Society and Population Policy has also been running a nationwide promotional campaign, 'A Happier World for Both Children and Parents,' to encourage positive attitudes toward marriage, childbirth, and parenting.
As a result of these efforts, the committee conducted four rounds of public perception surveys on marriage, childbirth, and parenting since last year. The fourth survey (August 2025) showed a 6.7 percentage point increase in positive views on marriage (62.6%) and a 3.5 percentage point rise in marriage intentions (64.5%) compared to the first survey (March 2024).
The perceived necessity of having children among unmarried men and women rose by 11.2 percentage points to 61.2%. The intention to have children also increased by 10 percentage points, reaching 39.5%.
Vice Chairperson Joo added, "In August of this year, the number of births was 20,867, a 3.8% increase compared to the same month last year, and the number of marriages reached 19,449, up 11%, marking the highest in eight years." He continued, "These results are possible thanks to both policy responses and improved public perception." He further noted, "If this trend continues, the total number of births this year is expected to reach around 250,000, a roughly 6% increase from last year."
The first 2,000 participants in the contest will receive coffee gift certificates as a token of appreciation. Thirty outstanding entries, selected for use in advertisements, will be awarded supermarket gift certificates worth 300,000 KRW each. Yong-Beom Shin, Director of Communications and Cooperation at the committee, stated, "The final winning entries will be used as part of the committee's nationwide advertising campaign videos."

skjung@fnnews.com Jung Sang-geun Reporter