edaily strategy forum

¡°The population issue is more serious than any other social problem.¡±

These words were written in the preface to 'Crisis in the Population Question', co-authored in 1934 by Swedish political economist Gunnar Myrdal(Nobel Prize in Economics, 1974) and sociologist Alva Myrdal (Nobel Peace Prize, 1982). Nearly a century ago, their book contributed to the development of Sweden¡¯s renowned social welfare system, earning the country its reputation as a ¡°childcare paradise.¡± The emergence of the ¡°latte papa¡± - a father pushing a stroller with one hand and holding a coffee in the other - is the result of the collective efforts of multiple generations, society, and government in Sweden.

This holds profound implications for Korean society today. Korea¡¯s total fertility rate has continued to decline, from 0.81 in 2021, to 0.78 in 2022, and to 0.72 in 2023. Although it rebounded slightly to 0.75 last year, it still remains the lowest in the world. At the end of last year, Korea entered a super-aged society, with those aged 65 and over accounting for more than 20% of the population. Once a nation concerned about explosive population growth, Korea is now aging at the fastest rate in the world. The recent wildfires in northern Gyeongbuk-do starkly revealed the reality of rural aging: both the victims and the firefighters were elderly, a tragedy born of a super-aged society and population decline.

This is why the ¡°Edaily Strategy Forum,¡± Korea¡¯s premier knowledge conference now in its 16th year, continues to spotlight the population issue, as it did in 2023 and 2024.

While previous forums focused on the ¡°population cliff¡± and ¡°population crisis,¡± this year we aim to address the urgent and practical challenges of building a nation for the elderly. We also seek solutions to transform the current inverted-pyramid demographic crisis into an opportunity. On the second day of the event, the ¡°Edaily-PERI Special Symposium¡± will feature in-depth discussions and future directions for Korea, with participation from the Korea Institute for Policy Evaluation(PERI) as well as three of America¡¯s leading think tanks: the Brookings Institution, the Urban Institute, and MDRC. In addition, you will hear the fresh perspectives of young generations from Korea and abroad, whose ideas and policy proposals were selected through our ¡°Solutions to the Population Problem¡± contest.

Through this year¡¯s Strategy Forum, Edaily aspires to become a platform for solutions to the population crisis, to lead a paradigm shift in the population discourse, and to contribute to the discovery of innovative and creative approaches.

Kwak, Jea Sun Chairman of EDAILY