North Jeolla Special Self-Governing Province is introducing the 'North Jeolla-style SOS Care Center', the first of its kind in the country, to address blind spots in childcare for young children.

To provide 24-hour care services to infants and toddlers being raised at home, the province is expanding the target users and hours of the existing hourly childcare system. Accordingly, the target users will be infants aged 6 months to 5 years old, and the service hours will be extended to 24 hours on weekdays and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends and holidays.

This year, the pilot operation will begin in Iksan City, with the 'Ding Dong Dang Kindergarten' (Director Kim Jeom-soon) selected as the first operating institution. The center is expected to contribute to filling the childcare gap as it is located in a highly accessible and safe location.

Additionally, the province plans to expand the number of hourly childcare classes from 59 to 86 to meet short-term childcare needs of parents.

Hwang Cheol-ho, Director of the Welfare Women's Health Department of North Jeolla Province, expressed his hope that the North Jeolla-style SOS Care Center will contribute to creating a safe childcare environment, and stated, "We will continue to implement meticulous childcare policies to ensure that children can grow up healthy."