SEOUL, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- South Korea aimed to expand grants to young farmers as part of efforts to help young and beginning farmers settle in the countryside, the agriculture ministry said Wednesday.

Under a program launched in 2018 that provides a maximum 1.1 million won (780 U.S. dollars) a month per farmer for up to three years, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs aimed to lift the number of grant recipients by 5,000 to 17,600 by the end of 2024.

The ministry aimed to raise the number to around 23,000 in 2025 in a bid to relieve the difficulties faced by young farmers as a result of income decreases at the start-up stage of farming.

Of the grant beneficiaries, the percentage of prospective farmers with no experience in farming practices has been on a steady increase from 42.5 percent in 2018 to 78.3 percent in 2024.

Among the recipients, the percentage of those who are not from agricultural high schools or agricultural universities has also been on the rise from 65.6 percent to 79.9 percent in the cited period.

It indicated that young people living in urban areas showed higher interest in farming as a job, the ministry noted.

The percentage of young female farmers in the grant recipients has risen from 17.5 percent in 2018 to 29.6 percent in 2024, showing more women interested in becoming farmers.

To support young farmers, the ministry will build four more long-term rental-based smart farms in 2025, increasing the number of rental housing complexes from the current 17 to 27. Enditem

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