Poverty in South Korea

Choo, Park and Yoon noted that both absolute and relative poverty have declined in Korea from 1965 to 1990.

[1] They concluded that "rapid economic growth during [the analyzed period of 1960s-1980s] in Korea has alleviated poverty to a great extent".

[4] On November 15, 2021, according to reports, South Korea ranks fourth in the world in terms of relative poverty among major economies.

Studies taken across many demographics concluded that South Korean elderly with low income lack proper social protection from the government and are the most disadvantaged.

That makes South Korea the leader in this aspect as 3 times the growth as compared to the international average.

Many low-income elderly individuals are currently living with their children, which are often providing them with financial aid, and many also depend on welfare transfers.

[4] This can be explained by the Korean traditional reliance on family and the private sector to provide such services.

[11] In a now more competitive job market, the head of the household or householder is expected to be more educated, which makes it hard for rural families to compete with a lack of access to higher education, subsequently resulting in income inequality between urban and rural areas.

attribute income inequality to a change in traditional household head dynamics in South Korea.