The Seoul Metropolitan Government will invest a total of 109 billion won by 2030 to support 913,000 isolated and reclusive young people in the city. As of last year, the number of isolated and reclusive young people in Seoul was estimated at 248,000, nearly double the 128,300 in 2022. This increase among isolated and reclusive youth could, in the long term, lead to social and economic expense burdens such as lower productivity and higher welfare expenditure.
Oh Se-hoon, the Seoul mayor, on the 7th at City Hall released the "Isolated and Reclusive Youth Warm(ON) Project." The project focuses on preventing the emergence of isolated and reclusive youth and providing follow-up support.
An isolated young person is a youth whose emotional or physical isolation has continued for at least six months. A reclusive young person is someone who has lived with almost no outings for at least six months, has had no economic activity in the past week, and has not sought jobs or engaged in studies within the past month.
The project released by the mayor that day consists of five areas and 18 tasks: ▲ family support by life stage ▲ emotional and specialized medical support ▲ social adaptation and self-reliance support ▲ strengthening the discovery and management system for isolated and reclusive youth ▲ raising awareness. The city said it created a dense recovery system by rallying all members of society, including district offices, foundations and centers, the office of education, schools, and private companies.
The number of isolated and reclusive young people in Seoul continues to rise. According to a fact-finding survey conducted by the city last year, the number of reclusive young people living cut off from society among the city's youth population (ages 19 to 39) was estimated at about 54,000. In addition, the number of young people who feel socially isolated was expected to be about 194,000. In a 2022 survey, reclusive young people were estimated at about 33,400 and isolated young people at about 94,900.
Accordingly, the city plans to invest a total of 109 billion won over five years from this year to 2030 to support isolated and reclusive youth.
First, it will implement measures to prevent isolation and reclusion among young people in advance. It will move to identify children and adolescents early who show signs of reclusive isolation. There are survey results showing that 12.6% of isolated and reclusive youth began their isolation or reclusion in their teens. It will also expand parent education and family counseling beyond the individuals themselves so prevention and healing can occur at home. The Seoul Isolation Prevention Center and 25 family centers will support isolation and reclusion screening and counseling for parents. Parent education will be increased more than tenfold from about 2,300 last year. This year, the program will target a total of 25,000 people—20,000 online and 5,000 offline.
It will also expand essential facilities frequented by isolated and reclusive youth. Five "Youth Mind Convenience Stores" will be set up near universities, cram-school districts, and subway stations, which are areas with high concentrations of young people. It is known that even youths who rarely go out still use convenience stores. Accordingly, the Youth Mind Convenience Store will be operated as a shelter where they can naturally communicate with peers and be connected to psychological counseling and recovery support programs.
It will also provide medical support. In July, a dedicated medical center for high-risk youth for mental health, the "Youth Mind Clinic," will be established within Eunpyeong Hospital. The targets are isolated and reclusive youth at high risk for early psychosis and mental illness. After precise diagnosis by specialized medical staff, treatment and youth-tailored programs will be provided.
It will also strengthen step-by-step challenges that help with social reintegration and provide work experience for economic self-reliance. The key is not to force outside activities but to provide careful support so they can adapt to society step by step. Opportunities for social adaptation linked to e-sports, gardening, and Han River sports, along with cultural and sports prescriptions, will also be provided.
In addition, to ensure that isolated and reclusive youth continue to receive support without gaps even as they move into middle age, a dedicated clinic for middle-aged people (ages 40 to 64) will be established and begin operations in the second half. It also plans to promote cheering messages that strengthen young people's minds and a campaign to improve social awareness.
Oh Se-hoon said, "Support for isolated and reclusive youth is not just welfare, but an investment in protecting the future of our society," adding, "To ensure that not a single young person is left alone in loneliness, we will first reach out to young people who are out of sight and take responsibility to the end so they can be connected back to the world."