![Kang Nam-hoon, vice chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Basic Society (front center), poses for a photo with civilian committee members before a plenary session held Tuesday at the committee's main conference room in Sejong to mark the panel's 100th day since its launch. [Presidential Committee on Basic Society]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/07/21/news-p.v1.20260721.d9ba0ff3e8424f598c8ebad49c8d0b9d_P1.jpg)
The Presidential Committee on Basic Society held a plenary session of its civilian members Tuesday to mark the committee's 100th day since its launch and discuss the direction for realizing a "basic society," the committee said.
Vice Chairperson Kang Nam-hoon and 18 appointed members attended the meeting, where they reviewed the concept, definition, vision and implementation strategies for a basic society that had been discussed across 13 expert subcommittees covering areas such as income, employment, housing and finance and consolidated the findings into a unified framework. Members also shared the committee's work achievements to date and its operational direction for the second half of 2026.
The committee, which held its inaugural ceremony on April 14, has been working to establish a vision and policy agenda for a basic society under the slogan "Basic rights for all, rights for all," collaborating with central government ministries and related committees.
To flesh out the vision, strategies and sector-specific policies to be included in a forthcoming basic society implementation plan, the 13 expert subcommittees and three special subcommittees have worked with relevant ministries through more than 40 rounds of discussions since the committee's launch, identifying tasks and developing them into concrete policies.
The committee held a joint workshop with the National AI Strategy Committee and a consultative meeting with the Social Security Committee to discuss policy matters and identify areas for cooperation. It also convened a joint session with the Special Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Rural Communities to share progress on a basic income initiative for rural and fishing villages and to map out further collaboration, including identifying issues for joint discussion.
The committee also signed an MOU with the Korea Institute for Advanced Study to strengthen mutual cooperation, including identifying joint research tasks for realizing a basic society. It has held multiple forums and lectures on topics such as rural basic income to advocate for the necessity and vision of a basic society.
Going forward, the committee plans to finalize the "Basic Society Implementation Plan," which will lay out the vision and strategies for realizing a basic society, and begin building the foundations needed to put it into practice. Starting in the second half of this year, it will hold outreach committee sessions — traveling to communities to hear directly from citizens, including youth and future generations — organized by demographic group, such as youth, people with disabilities and the elderly, and by region, including islands, rural and fishing villages, and areas experiencing population decline.
The committee also plans to work with the Ministry of Interior and Safety and other related ministries to monitor progress on basic society policy tasks and strengthen the overall implementation framework. In preparation for the enactment of a Basic Society Framework Act currently before the National Assembly, it will also develop a mid- to long-term comprehensive plan for advancing the basic society agenda.
"A basic society is the path to resolving the complex crises we face today and investing in future generations," Kang said. "Going forward, the committee will create a public forum centered on the basic society agenda, give concrete shape to the policy tasks that citizens need, and work with government ministries to prioritize and advance the policy tasks required to build the foundations of a basic society."
thlee@heraldcorp.com
