The Gyeongnam Provincial Pension system, the first of its kind introduced by Gyeongnam Province to mitigate income gaps before the national pension kicks in, is receiving a positive response from the public. In response to overwhelming initial application numbers, Gyeongnam Province announced it would recruit an additional 20,000 members in the first half of this year, aiming for a more extensive outreach moving into the future. Governor Park Wan-soo held a press conference on the 10th to detail the plans.

On the opening day of applications last month, over 100,000 residents simultaneously accessed the application website, causing server issues due to the high demand. Within just three days, the initial target of 10,000 members was met, significantly outpacing expectations. The province had planned to gradually expand eligibility based on income brackets but faced challenges as interest exceeded initial limits.

In light of the surge in applications and requests from various cities and counties for an expansion of the program, Gyeongnam Province has decided to rethink its strategy. Originally aiming for a steady increase of 10,000 members per year over the next ten years, officials have revised their recruitment goals to secure a total of 50,000 enrollments in the first two years alone. The target demographic includes Gyeongnam residents aged 40 to 54 with specific income criteria, facilitating a broader safety net for those impending retirement without adequate financial resources.