Lee: "Youth policy feels like an afterthought"

[The Financial News] President Lee Jae-myung of South Korea on the 17th ordered a review of creating a dedicated research organization for youth policy, saying, "It feels like youth policy is being treated as something secondary" in the current youth policy research framework.
In the afternoon, during a briefing at the Yeongbingwan State Guest House on the work of 102 public institutions and relevant institutions, President Lee received a report from the National Youth Policy Institute (NYPI). In the course of the report, he asked, "So our country does not have a separate research institute for youth policy, and the Youth Policy Institute is handling that work as well?"
When Baek Il-hyeon, the head of the institute, replied, "We do not handle everything; each relevant institution conducts research on its own related topics," President Lee followed up by asking, "So there is no institution that is exclusively in charge of youth policy research, correct?"
Lee went on, "Among the targets of women’s policy, there will naturally be policies for young women. In labor policy, there will of course be policies for young workers." He then pointed out, however, that "those cannot really be called youth policy."
When Baek explained, "Last year we carried out the research for establishing the Basic Plan for Youth Policy, which will begin to be implemented this year," President Lee responded, "It feels like youth policy is being treated as something secondary," adding, "There should be an organization dedicated to this."
He continued, "One of the most serious problems in our society is the youth issue. Yet among the countless research organizations, there is no research body dedicated solely to youth issues, and that is somewhat problematic." He then instructed, "If necessary, consider creating an additional research institute, or setting up a government policy department within an existing body to handle this."
Prime Minister Kim Min-seok of South Korea also lent his support to the discussion. "In fact, there is no department within the government that deals only with youth policy," he said. "If you really look for one, there is a Youth Affairs Office in the Prime Minister’s Office, but it is still weak. There is no unit that focuses solely on this, and as you mentioned, it has a multi-ministerial character. I think it is time we seriously consider creating some kind of entity that brings everything together in one place."

west@fnnews.com Seong Seok-woo Reporter