Youth Foundation and National Integration Committee hold ‘Youth Single-Person Household Policy Proposal ZOOM Briefing’

Take time to share the various concerns of young people living alone

The Youth Foundation (hereinafter referred to as the Foundation) successfully held the ‘Youth Single-Person Household Policy Proposal ZOOM Briefing Session’ with the National Integration Committee (hereinafter referred to as the Committee) and the Youth Center on the 5th, with the participation of about 150 center workers from all over the country.

This information session was held jointly by the Foundation and the Committee to propose policies to support the stable work and life of young people in response to the increase in young single-person households, and was held for youth centers across the country that are on the front line of youth policy delivery.

In particular, it was a meaningful time for the foundation, which operates the Central Youth Support Center, to share the various concerns and countermeasures experienced by young single-person households with center workers who encounter young people in the local field.

At the event site, not only Special Committee Chairman Kim Seok-ho (National Integration Committee Special Committee on Youth Single-Person Household Response) and Special Committee members Kim Seong-ah and Byeon Mi-ri, but also three youth panelists who are actually living as single-person households participated and shared various opinions.

At the event, Special Committee Chairman Kim Seok-ho announced policy proposals for young single-person households derived from the special committee’s activities over the past five months, providing effective support for young single-person households exposed to various difficulties such as living safety, care, isolation, and seclusion. An on-site evaluation of measures followed.

In addition, Special Committee Chairman Kim Seok-ho explained policy alternatives in four directions: ▲ safe living environment ▲ stable economic base ▲ response to isolation and seclusion ▲ establishment of an integrated support system for young single-person households.

Details include: ▲ Spreading the development of the ‘co-housing model’ ▲ Utilizing Senior Police for safe return home ▲ Providing housing management support services ▲ Creating neighborhood restaurants to solve the problem of eating alone ▲ Integrated employment service support for local migrant youth ▲ Isolation and seclusion self-diagnosis scale Development ▲Support for single-person households, establishment of central and local governance, etc.

The youth panelists who participated in the field shared their stories of living alone and requested support services for single-person households that could be more tangible.

Mr. Kwon Woo, a job seeker who has been a single-person household for 11 years, said, “I lived in seclusion for several years because I was struggling with housing problems, such as being rejected every time for a rental house and receiving a notice from a suddenly changed landlord asking me to vacate the house.” He added, “I lived in seclusion for several years. “Housing support services are urgently needed,” he said, expressing difficulties.

Mr. Kim, a college student who has been living alone for 7 years, said, “The most difficult thing was having to control everything on my own after living according to a set pattern. I wish there was a program to help young people control their behavior.”

The youth center that participated via ZOOM also sympathized with customized services and actively agreed on the need to support youth from single-person households.

Manager Lee Woo of the Youth Center in Seoul said, “In the 1:1 housing counseling we conducted last year, young people wanted customized counseling based on their income and preferences, but it was very unfortunate that we could not find an organization that could connect them with this.” He added, “The special committee’s ‘Establishment of an Integrated Platform’ ‘As suggested, cooperation with related organizations for policy linkage is urgently needed,’ he said.

Lee Woo, director of the youth center in Gyeonggi-do, said, “While carrying out a program for single-person households, we learned that there was a lot of anxiety about security.” He added, “Policies such as the special committee’s ‘creation of a safe residential environment’ are quickly spreading to our region and neighborhood.” “I hope so,” he said.

Park Joo-hee, Secretary General of the Youth Foundation, said, “The number of single-person youth households is approximately 2.16 million, and is rapidly increasing amid various changes.” He added, “The Foundation is a window for conveying youth voices to society and a national youth center through the Central Youth Support Center. As it serves as a hub for youth single-person households, we will refer to the policy proposals of the Special Committee on Youth Single-Person Households of the National Integration Committee and the various opinions expressed at the briefing session to provide support for policies so that young people from single-person households can have a smooth social life and economic activities. “I will,” he said.

Reporter Kim Jeong-hwan [email protected]

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