Chungnam Province has claimed the top spot nationwide in youth policy evaluations, receiving a presidential institutional commendation.

The province announced on September 21 that it was selected as the most outstanding institution among 16 regional cities and provinces nationwide following a youth policy evaluation, receiving a presidential commendation at the official "2026 Youth Day" commemorative ceremony held at the Blue House on the 19th.

This award is the result of a comprehensive evaluation recognizing the province's efforts in promoting youth policy initiatives, such as expanding youth participation in policymaking and reflecting field feedback in provincial administration.

The province has operated the Youth Policy Adjustment Committee to gather youth opinions on currently implemented policies and expand their reflection in actual policies. The reflection rate of youth opinions surged from 74% in 2024 to 98% last year.

In addition, as financial damages among young adults—such as lease fraud and overseas employment scams—have increased, financial education previously focused on young adults and new office workers was expanded to include university students and high school seniors, strengthening efforts to prevent financial damage among the youth generation.

Alongside these measures, the province has continuously pursued customized policies reflecting regional characteristics, including the expansion of the Youth Participation Committee, support for youth startups and job creation, interest support for youth housing rental deposits, and the hosting of a nationwide youth festival.

"We are striving to make Chungnam an Artificial Intelligence (AI) capital where young people gather by incorporating the voices of the youth into our policies," said Lee Jong-ik, Director-General of the Youth and Women's Bureau of the province. "Moving forward, we will continue to expand opportunities to directly listen to youth opinions and reflect them in policies, such as through the non-degree-based recruitment of youth policy advisors and the hosting of grand youth policy debates."

[Copyright (c) Global Economic Times. All Rights Reserved.]