🚨 Population Vitality Center

Today Korean Social News for Beginners | 2025.08.20

0️⃣ Comprehensive Hub for Fighting Local Population Decline and Urban Regeneration Strategy

📌 Yeongju City Launches Full-Scale Strategy to Overcome Local Population Crisis with 'Population Vitality Center'

💬 Gyeongbuk's Yeongju City is investing 9.6 billion won to build a 'Population Vitality Center' on the old Yeongju Post Office site to address structural population decline after the city's population fell below 100,000. The center will be a multi-purpose space for youth, foreigners, and residents, with official opening planned for 2027. The center will operate not just as an administrative facility, but as a control tower for population policy and a key hub for community recovery. Yeongju City plans to transform the old downtown into a vibrant space through urban regeneration projects, aiming for population recovery through customized services and support for youth and foreigners. This is gaining attention as a new solution to the local population decline problem facing cities nationwide.

💡 Summary

• A Population Vitality Center is a dedicated hub space for population policies to combat local population decline crisis.
• It functions as a community hub connecting youth, foreigners, and residents.
• It promotes old downtown revitalization and living population expansion through urban regeneration projects.

1️⃣ Definition

Population Vitality Center refers to a dedicated hub space for population policies promoted by local governments to combat local population decline crisis. It functions as a community hub connecting youth, foreigners, and residents beyond simple administrative support, aiming to build sustainable regional ecosystems by combining customized programs with urban regeneration.

In response to the nationwide spread of local population decline, it provides a comprehensive approach to restore vitality in population-declining areas and promote new population inflow. It's a one-stop service hub providing administrative services, cultural spaces, startup support, and housing support all in one place.

💡 Why is it important?

• Provides systematic and comprehensive approaches to combat local population decline crisis.
• Builds customized support systems for attracting new populations like youth and foreigners.
• Simultaneously promotes old downtown revitalization and regional economic recovery through urban regeneration.
• Contributes to community restoration and strengthening social cohesion.

2️⃣ Local Population Decline Status and Need for Population Vitality Centers

📕 Nationwide Local Population Decline Crisis Status

• The crisis of South Korea's local cities is serious. Key situations include:

  • About 40% of the nation's 228 local governments are classified as extinction-risk areas.
  • Yeongju City has shown continuous decline since the 100,000 population mark collapsed in 2020.
  • Regional vitality is rapidly declining as youth population (ages 20-39) outflow to metropolitan areas accelerates.
  • Natural population growth is difficult to expect due to declining birth rates and aging.

• A vicious cycle structure of local extinction is forming. Major problems include:

  • Youth outflow → Economically active population decrease → Regional economic decline → Job shortage → Additional population outflow vicious cycle
  • Commercial area decline and living infrastructure reduction due to population decrease further worsen living conditions.
  • School consolidation, medical facility shortages, and public transportation route reduction occur in chain reactions.
  • Local government financial deterioration also lacks resources for promoting population policies.

📕 Limitations of Existing Population Policies and New Approaches

• Problems of scattered operation of existing population policies have been revealed. Major limitations include:

  • Birth support, youth settlement, and foreigner support were operated separately by different departments.
  • Lack of policy connectivity failed to create synergy effects.
  • One-time support made continuous and systematic management difficult.
  • Communication and integration between local residents and new incoming populations were insufficient.

• Population Vitality Centers present an integrated approach. Key features include:

  • Serves as a control tower for comprehensive operation of all population-related policies in one place.
  • Creates an inclusive space embracing youth, foreigners, and existing residents.
  • Provides one-stop services including not only administrative services but also culture, education, and startup support.
  • Simultaneously promotes physical and social environment improvement through connection with urban regeneration projects.

💡 Major Indicators of Local Population Decline Crisis

1. Extinction Risk Index: Elderly population (65+) ÷ Women aged 20-39 is 1.0 or higher
2. Youth Population Decline Rate: Population decline rate of people in their 20s-30s over the past 5 years
3. Birth Number Decline: Continuous declining trend of annual births
4. Social Population Movement: State where outgoing population to other regions exceeds incoming population
5. Economic Activity Population Ratio: Decline in working-age population (15-64) ratio

3️⃣ Major Functions and Expected Effects of Population Vitality Centers

✅ Core Functions of Yeongju City Population Vitality Center

• Functions as a one-stop administrative service hub. Major services include:

  • Handles all youth settlement-related work in one place, including youth startup support, housing support, and job connections.
  • Provides integrated support services for foreign residence, employment, and life adaptation.
  • Handles birth and childcare support, childcare facility connections, and family-friendly policy guidance.
  • Includes welfare services for existing residents and community activity support.

• Operates as a complex space for culture and communication. Major facilities include:

  • Prepares multipurpose spaces for various cultural programs and educational courses.
  • Creates cafes and lounges where young entrepreneurs and local residents can interact.
  • Provides cultural exchange programs where foreigners and Koreans can participate together.
  • Includes play spaces and childcare support facilities for children and families.

✅ Connection Effects with Urban Regeneration

• Serves as a hub for old downtown revitalization. Major effects include:

  • Brings new vitality to the old downtown center by utilizing the old Yeongju Post Office site.
  • Creates urban regeneration effects connected to surrounding commercial area revitalization centered on the center.
  • Serves as a mediator connecting empty shops and houses in the old downtown to youth startup spaces and residential spaces.
  • Has urban landscape improvement effects through remodeling existing buildings and creating new facilities.

• Becomes the core of living population expansion strategy. Major strategies include:

  • Applies the living population concept including not only permanent residents but also temporary and floating populations.
  • Induces increased population visiting from surrounding areas to use the center.
  • Contributes to the local economy by providing services for tourists and business visitors.
  • Attracts new types of residents by providing spaces and services for remote workers or digital nomads.

4️⃣ Related Term Explanations

🔎 Local Extinction Response Fund

• The Local Extinction Response Fund is government funding for supporting population-declining areas.
  • The Local Extinction Response Fund is a special fund created by the government since 2022 to systematically support areas facing population decline and local extinction crisis. It operates with a scale of over 1 trillion won annually and serves as a core financial resource for local governments' population policy promotion.
  • Major uses of the fund include: First, housing support and job connection projects for youth settlement. Second, foreign worker and multicultural family support programs. Third, birth and childcare-friendly environment creation projects. Fourth, living infrastructure expansion and settlement condition improvement projects. Fifth, job creation and regional economic revitalization projects.
  • Yeongju City's Population Vitality Center construction is also a representative case receiving support from this fund. Local governments must present comprehensive population policy plans suited to regional characteristics when applying for the fund, and continuous support is determined through performance management and evaluation. This aims to enhance the independent development capacity of areas in local extinction crisis.

🔎 Living Population

• Living population means substantial regional utilization population beyond permanent residents.
  • Living population is a concept encompassing not only permanent residents registered in a specific area, but all populations who regularly use or stay in that area for a certain period. It includes commuting/school populations, tourists, remote workers, and seasonal residents.
  • Components of living population include: First, permanent residents who actually live and are registered. Second, temporary residents who stay and live for a certain period. Third, floating populations who visit for work, tourism, shopping, etc. Fourth, related populations who maintain continuous relationships with the area while living outside.
  • The reason living population expansion strategy is important in local cities is that regional economy and social vitality can be maintained even when permanent population growth is difficult. Population Vitality Centers will serve as hubs for attracting and supporting these various forms of living population, contributing to sustainable regional development.

🔎 Urban Regeneration New Deal

• Urban Regeneration New Deal is a national policy for comprehensive revitalization of declining old downtowns.
  • Urban Regeneration New Deal is the government's core urban policy promoted since 2017, aiming to revitalize old downtowns and deteriorated residential areas through gradual improvement rather than complete demolition. It pursues customized regeneration reflecting resident participation and regional characteristics, simultaneously promoting physical environment improvement and social-economic vitality recovery.
  • Major types of urban regeneration include: First, Our Neighborhood Revival for small-scale residential area environment improvement projects. Second, Residential Area Support Type combining living infrastructure expansion and residential environment improvement. Third, General Neighborhood Type promoting living center function recovery. Fourth, Central Commercial District Type utilizing old downtown commercial areas and historical-cultural resources. Fifth, Economic Base Type regenerating economic base facilities like industrial complexes or ports.
  • Yeongju City's Population Vitality Center is being promoted in connection with Central Commercial District Type urban regeneration projects. It takes a comprehensive approach utilizing the old post office site to bring new vitality to the old downtown center and connecting surrounding commercial areas and residential area improvement. Through this, it aims for overall regional revitalization beyond simple building construction.

5️⃣ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: How is a Population Vitality Center different from existing community centers or welfare centers?

A: Comprehensive population policy promotion and integrated services for various groups are key differences.

• Population Vitality Centers have fundamental differences from existing community centers or welfare centers in establishment purpose and function. First, while community centers mainly focus on administrative work processing, Population Vitality Centers serve as control towers overseeing overall population policies. Second, while welfare centers specialize in services for specific groups (elderly, disabled, etc.), Population Vitality Centers take an integrated approach embracing all groups including youth, foreigners, and existing residents. Third, while existing facilities focus on service provision, Population Vitality Centers perform community hub functions that promote community formation and mutual exchange.
• There are also differences in physical space composition. They are designed as complex spaces that can be used for various purposes, including startup support spaces, cultural exchange facilities, and informal meeting places like cafes and lounges. Through this, they serve as hubs for regional vitality creation beyond simple civil service processing or welfare services.

Q: Is there cost-effectiveness when 9.6 billion won is invested in building a Population Vitality Center?

A: Effects through regional economic revitalization and population policy efficiency are expected from a long-term perspective.

• The investment cost of 9.6 billion won is large in the short term, but is evaluated as a sufficiently recoverable investment from a long-term perspective. First, administrative efficiency greatly improves by integrated operation of previously scattered population-related policies. Synergy effects can be created by connecting projects previously conducted separately by each department. Second, there are economic effects of increased local tax revenue and regional consumption when the region's working-age population increases through youth attraction and settlement support. Third, considerable effects from real estate value rise and commercial area recovery due to old downtown revitalization are expected.
• Looking at overseas cases, similar hub facility investments in Germany's small city regeneration projects or Japan's regional revitalization policies have actually contributed to preventing population outflow and regional revitalization. Yeongju City's case is also expected to achieve investment cost recovery and continuous effect creation within 5 years after opening in 2027.

Q: Can other local cities benchmark Population Vitality Centers?

A: Customized approaches suited to regional characteristics are needed, but the basic model is sufficiently applicable.

• The basic concept and operation method of Population Vitality Centers is a model that can be sufficiently benchmarked by other local cities. First, core principles like integrated population policy operation, multi-group inclusive services, and urban regeneration connection are universally applicable. Second, funding can be secured through connection with national policies like Local Extinction Response Fund or Urban Regeneration New Deal. Third, scale and functions can be adjusted and applied according to regional conditions.
• However, differentiation reflecting regional characteristics is essential. Industrial cities should specialize in youth job creation related to manufacturing, while tourist cities should strengthen startup support in culture and tourism fields. Also, it's important to design optimal scale and functions by comprehensively considering the region's population composition, existing infrastructure, and financial conditions. If Yeongju City's case succeeds, it has high possibility of spreading as a standard model for local cities nationwide.

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