Child Development Accounts—South Korea (proposed)

The Korean Ministry of Health and Welfare (KMHW) has proposed a Child Development Accounts (CDAs) initiative which would start on January 1, 2007, and expand to approximately 50% of all Korean newborns by 2010. Savings from CDAs could be accessed by children at age 18 for education, housing, or micro-enterprise start-up, according to the proposal. Monthly deposits into a CDA of up to the equivalent of US$30 (exchange rate: $1 = 1,000 Korean Won) would be matched 1:1 by the Korean government. The proposal calls for monthly CDA deposits for institutionalized children and children without parents of $60, of which $30 will be from organizational sponsors and $30 matched by the government. Starting in 2010, the Korean government plans to provide matched deposits twice, $200 at birth, and $200 at age seven.
Child Development Accounts Proposed in South Korea