The Ministry of Economy and the 7th Long-Term Strategy Committee discussed strategies to expand growth foundations and support youth at various stages of development to address polarization.
On September 22, the Ministry of Economy held the 8th subcommittee meeting of the Future Society Strategy Group and Governance Reform Group in Seoul. The meeting shared key points from the recently announced comprehensive investment strategy for youth at different growth stages and discussed directions for growth strategies to respond to polarization.
It was emphasized that youth policy should shift from merely considering specific generations to becoming a top investment policy aimed at strengthening the nation's future capabilities. Regarding polarization, it was noted that productivity gaps between companies could be a structural factor contributing to polarization, particularly during industrial structural changes such as the transition to artificial intelligence (AI). Therefore, there is a need to expand the growth foundations for businesses.
Subcommittee members proposed policy directions to enhance corporate competitiveness and expand opportunities for youth.
Chairman Kwon Oh-hyun stated that to sustainably address polarization, it is essential to expand growth foundations while creating an environment where businesses can challenge themselves and grow, alongside strengthening the social safety net.
Professor Kyeong Bong-oh from Kookmin University suggested that youth policy should consider not only asset disparities but also opportunity gaps throughout life, as well as regional and job conditions.
Professor In So-young from KAIST proposed developing job-specific programs that provide experience in small and medium-sized enterprises to support both workforce acquisition for companies and career development for youth.
Economist Moon So-young from the Economic Plus Research Institute highlighted the need to strengthen connections with private platforms for effective delivery of youth policies. The committee members agreed that continuous improvement and increased utilization are more important than creating new platforms.
The Ministry of Economy and the committee plan to continue discussions on future strategy tasks based on the opinions presented in this meeting.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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