SEOUL: The Republic of Korea needs to consider accepting more foreign workers to increase its working-age population amid a looming demographic crisis, according to a top official.

Korean news agency Yonhap quoted You Hye-mi, a senior presidential aide, as saying this in a radio interview as Korea is grappling with the world’s lowest birth rate and an aging population.

“As the working-age population is sharply decreasing, utilising foreign workers could be an option to increase the population,” You said in an interview on KBS radio.

South Korea’s total fertility rate, or the average number of children expected to be born to a woman over her lifetime, reached a record low of 0.72 in 2023. The figure is far below the 2.1 births per woman needed to maintain a stable population without immigration.

If the current trend continues, You warned the country’s population could decrease by about 30 percent and the proportion of the elderly population will surpass that of the working population. “It is questionable w
hether the current system can function as it does now in such a situation,” she said.

While the current work permit system allows recruiting of foreigners in non-professional fields, You said the government needs a long-term, comprehensive strategy to hire foreign employees and the proposed Ministry of Population Strategy and Planning aims to play a critical role in this regard.

She said the cost of the pilot programme to recruit domestic helpers from the Philippines is still high due to the application of minimum wage systems, calling for measures to make the programme more accessible to ordinary households.

Source: Emirates News Agency