Suncheon's Childcare Model, Launched 3 Years Early, Adopted as National Policy

A capable doer recognizes another capable doer. Though technically an independent for various political reasons, Suncheon Mayor Noh Gwan-gyu was the first among current and former local government heads in the Jeonnam region to publicly declare support for President Lee Jae-myung ahead of his administration's launch. While it may not be an official presidential endorsement, a proactive local leader's policy has been adopted by the central government, drawing widespread attention. The "Suncheon-Style Infant Safety Class" program, introduced by Suncheon in Jeonnam Province in 2023 under the 8th popularly elected administration, has been confirmed as a national government policy this year, emerging as a role model for the entire country. The launch of the government's "0-year-old class ratio improvement program" this year is seen as validating Suncheon's policy leadership. Suncheon's innovative childcare policies in response to the low birthrate crisis are strengthening the city's reputation as "the best city to raise children," observers say. The city has established a preemptive childcare safety net — including the Suncheon-Style Infant Safety Classes introduced three years ahead of the central government, expanded assistant teachers, increased subsidies for necessary expenses, and a year-round 365-day care system — positioning itself as a leading model for childcare policy nationwide. While the legal standard requires one teacher for every three infants, Suncheon provides budget support to enable one teacher for every two infants. This reduces the workload for childcare teachers and provides more attentive care for infants. Currently, 346 classes across 144 daycare centers in Suncheon are designated as Infant Safety Classes, with the city investing 2.48 billion won annually. Suncheon is also expanding assistant teacher support to address workforce shortages in childcare. The city secured 192 million won in municipal funds through this year's first supplementary budget to deploy 20 additional assistant teachers at small private and home-based daycare centers with 20 or fewer children. This marks the first time the city has provided additional assistant teachers using municipal funds. Additionally, since 2023, the city has introduced a long-service allowance, supporting approximately 500 childcare teachers who have worked at daycare centers for three or more years. Above all, the city has rolled out customized support measures to prevent the closure of private and home-based daycare centers operating under difficult conditions. Starting this year, the city is investing a total of 144 million won — 1.2 million won per center — across 120 daycare centers to subsidize small-item purchases, ensuring children receive care in a comfortable environment. For three daycare centers in rural areas (Nagan, Seungju, and Byeollyang Yeonghyeon) struggling with declining enrollment, the city is providing 100% coverage of infant class teacher labor costs by supplementing the government's 80% share with an additional 20% from municipal funds. Since July last year, the city has also used municipal funds to cover an additional 20% of lead teacher labor costs for toddler classes at 21 public and corporate daycare centers, easing the operational burden caused by declining enrollment. On top of these measures, policies to substantially reduce the financial burden on parents have been strengthened. The city is investing a total of 1.2 billion won across the first and second halves of the year to provide "enrolled child necessary expense" subsidies for 6,000 enrolled children annually. The subsidy was doubled to 200,000 won per child starting in October last year, drawing strong positive response from parents. Necessary expenses cover costs that parents must pay directly for daycare programs, including enrollment preparation fees, extracurricular activity fees, and field trip costs. Suncheon has been running this subsidy program since 2023 to ease parents' child-rearing burden. Notably, this initiative is drawing significant attention because it is a separate, additional subsidy from Suncheon on top of the central government's Nuri curriculum (ages 4-5) necessary expense support of 70,000 won per child per month, which has been in effect since July 2025. Suncheon has also expanded its care infrastructure this year by adding two Jeonnam-type hub daycare centers, building on its existing "24-hour Safe Daycare Centers" and "365-day Open Daycare Centers." Saetbyeol Daycare Center (Seokhyeon-dong) and Haedami Daycare Center (Ocheon-dong) were selected as the two new hub daycare centers. "Suncheon has proven that local government policies can become central government policies if done well," Mayor Noh Gwan-gyu said. "Suncheon's innovative policies toward becoming the best city to raise children will not stop."

Suncheon's Childcare Model, Launched 3 Years Early, Adopted as National Policy

Related Video

The Weight of the Gold Badge

Will More Supply Lower Home Prices? Seoul's Invincibility Myth and Policy Conditions

Rhee Warns Monetary, Fiscal Policy Alone Insufficient for Korean Economy

"China's Mineral Dominance a Threat; Korea Must Bet All on De-China Supply Chains"

Nurture Future Science's Green Shoots at Arboretums on Science Day

Cerebras Pushes for Nasdaq Listing as AI Inference Chip Sales Surge

Money Flows Into Value-Up Funds as Defensive Products Fall Out of Favor

KOSDAQ Extends Rally to Six Sessions; Earnings Key to Breaking 1,200

Seoul Apartment Jeonse Shortage Fuels 40% Price Surge and 'No-Look' Contracts

HD Hyundai Builds Shipbuilding Bases in India, Vietnam to Counter China