Increasing the number of childcare centers annually by an average of 34, and accounting for 30% of the total growth volume of childcare facilities funded by all local governments in Korea

Gyeonggi Province’s expansion project of national and public childcare centers for low-income citizens, and residents of rural areas that lack childcare facilities, is beginning to bear fruit. On average, 34 centers are being newly established in Gyeonggi Province each year.

Gyeonggi Province announced that there were 305 national and public childcare centers in the province as of the end of June, accounting for 18.6% of the total childcare centers of 1,643 in Korea. The province also announced that the growth of childcare centers in the province accounted for 30% of the total growth volume of 15 cities and provinces, including Seoul, for the past 3 years.

An official in charge of childcare facilities at the Childcare Policy Department said, “In 2005, 28 national and public childcare centers had been completed, and 30 in 2006. An additional 45 centers are scheduled to be completed by 2007. This means that the average number of new centers established annually is 34, which is four times higher than the annual average of Korea, which is 7.”

The official added, “In order to expand the amount of childcare provided by the public sector, 43 more centers are planned to be built this year. Currently, we are working on design, the choosing of building sites, and construction.”

Gyeonggi Province established a day-care center in May in a building at Seoul Theological University that was rented to the province by the university for free, a first in Korea. It has set an example as a best practice of cooperation and exchange of HR and physical resources between universities and local residents by opening an additional day-care center at Hanshin University in Osan on September 6.
The province also built the childcare center in the city park of Yeoncheon-gun to reduce the financial burden on the budgets of cities and districts, and to eliminate the difficulties involved in securing sites.
The province plans to open 45 national and public childcare centers in 2008, 48 centers in 2009, and 51 centers in 2010 by utilizing community center buildings and village office buildings.