▲ President Lee Jae Myung presides over a meeting at the foreign ministry in Seoul on Aug. 27, 2026. (Yonhap)

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SEOUL, Aug. 28 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung said Friday that young people have become the "most vulnerable" group amid reduced opportunities stemming from slowed growth, pledging to create a society where people can have as many opportunities as they work for.

The president made the pledge during the "2027 youth budget unboxing" event, which was arranged to unveil budget allocations and major projects for next year aimed at benefiting young people.

As South Korea has become a stable economy with slower growth, young people now have fewer opportunities and have become "the most vulnerable" generation, even though young people should represent both the country's future and present, Lee noted.

"The country and our community can be sustainable only when young people can dream and turn their hard work and challenges into opportunities for tomorrow," the president said.

The president said it is the country's duty to create a society where young people can have as many opportunities as they work for, highlighting the importance of creating "economic opportunities" in particular.

To that end, the government is pouring national resources into promoting economic growth to increase the overall economic "pie," he said, while also instructing officials to reform policies for young people to better reflect their actual needs.

The event comes as the Lee administration is bolstering policies for young people at a time when the president is seeing lower approval ratings among young voters than from any other age groups.

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