Hana opens 64th childcare center in Chilgok to boost birth rate

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo and a young student from Chilgok Waegwan Hana Childcare Center water flowers during the facility's opening ceremony on Friday. (Hana Financial Group)

Hana Financial Group opened a new childcare center in the southern county of Chilgok, North Gyeongsang Province, Friday. The new opening is part of the financial giant’s ongoing 100 Childcare Centers Initiative, which aims to help tackle the nation’s declining birth rate while enhancing social responsibility activities in collaboration with the local economy.

The latest Waegwan Hana Childcare Center marks the 64th of such facilities established since 2018, with 150 billion won ($112 million) budgeted to foster quality childcare environments in underprivileged regions. The project has been carried out in conjunction with local communities, including Chilgok-gun, through public-private partnerships.

The new center was selected for the 100 Childcare Centers Initiative in 2020 when its original facility was preparing for relocation due to aging infrastructure and environmental obstacles such as traffic noise.

Hana also hopes that the new center helps create jobs and tackle the declining population through its childcare initiative.

Hana added the new center was designed to foster children's creativity, while incorporating gently sloping surfaces that blend the indoor and outdoor spaces, giving children access to more open space. The group also said that the facility's location was strategically changed from the outskirts to the town center to improve accessibility for both children and staff.

"Through the 100 Childcare Centers Initiative, Hana Financial Group will do everything possible to create quality childcare environments where needed, mitigate the extremely low birth rate crisis and contribute to equitable regional growth," said Hana Financial Group's Chairman Ham Young-joo.

Hana Financial Group has constructed children's centers since 2003 and initiated the 100 Childcare Centers Initiative in May 2018 as part of its ESG efforts. Thus far, 64 public children's centers and nine workplace children's centers have been opened, with an additional 27 slated for completion by the first half of 2024.

Once completed, the 100 centers are projected to provide childcare support to roughly 10,000 children, generate around 5,500 direct and indirect jobs, and contribute to mitigating the falling birth rate and promoting regional growth.

By Moon Joon-hyun(ethan_moon@heraldcorp.com)