Vacationers visiting Yangyang, Gangwon-do, famous as a ‘surfing holy place’. Getty Image Bank
Statistics have shown that the ‘staying population’ who stays for more than 3 hours a day in a population-decreasing area is more helpful in revitalizing the local economy than the resident population. Depending on regional characteristics, it appears that policies should be designed to increase the resident population rather than the resident population.
The Ministry of Public Administration and Security and the National Statistical Office calculated the ‘living population’ for the second quarter (April to June) of 89 population-reducing areas (cities and counties) and announced the results on the 30th.
The living population, which is the sum of the registered population (registered residents, registered foreigners) and the resident population (staying once a month for more than 3 hours a day), is a new population concept under the ‘Special Act on Support for Declining Areas’, and is targeting areas with declining population starting this year. The Ministry of Public Administration and Security and the National Statistical Office are working together to calculate it.
The Ministry of Public Administration and Security and the National Statistical Office calculated the living population of areas with population decline for the first time in the first quarter of last year (January to March), using resident registration information, alien registration information, and mobile communication data (SK Telecom, KT, LG U+). The size of the living population (status by gender and age) and status (stay, accommodation, return visit, etc.) were calculated.
In addition to the first quarter data, credit card (Shinhan, Samsung, BC, Hana Card) usage information and credit rating agency (KCB) information were added to this second quarter calculation.
As a result of the analysis, the living population in areas with declining populations was approximately 28.5 million as of June this year, an increase of approximately 3.5 million from March. Of these, the resident population was approximately 23.6 million (approximately 83%), and the registered population was approximately 4.9 million (approximately 17%). The resident population compared to the registered population is 4.8 times, an increase from March (4.1 times).
In particular, the resident population in Yangyang, Gangwon-do, known as the ‘surfing mecca’, was 17.4 times the registered population, the highest in the country. Second place was Gapyeong, Gyeonggi-do with 15.6 times, and third place was Goseong, Gangwon-do with 15.4 times. For reference, in the first quarter of last year, Gurye, Jeollanam-do, with a resident population of 18.4 times the registered population, ranked first.
The proportion of residents living in other cities and provinces among the staying population was the largest in Gangwon (82.4%), and the proportion of people coming from the metropolitan area was especially high. The average number of days of stay for the staying population was 3.2 days and 3.4 days of stay, and the return visit rate within the past 6 months was 34.7%.
As of June, the average credit card spending of the resident population was about 115,000 won per person. Of the total credit card spending in areas with population decline, the proportion used by the registered population was 56.8%, and the proportion used by the resident population was 43.2%.
In Gangwon, the proportion of credit card use among the resident population (55.8%) was higher than that of the registered population. In particular, Goseong and Yangyang ranked first and second with the proportion of card use among the resident population reaching 75.7% and 71.6%, respectively. Although it is not the Gangwon region, Daegu County ranked third with 71.2%.
An official from the Ministry of Public Administration and Security said, “Considering that the average length of stay is 3.2 days, the 43.2% of the resident population using credit cards can be seen as having a very large impact on revitalizing the local economy.”
The Ministry of Public Administration and Security plans to continue to advance living population statistics in the future and increase data validity and reliability so that statistical data from areas with declining populations can be usefully utilized in various fields.
Reporter Kim Dong-yong [email protected]
