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Financial pressure soars, Korean women freeze eggs to delay childbirth

The difficulties from the epidemic have seriously affected income, along with the rising cost of living, putting financial pressure on young people. Korean women are trying to delay having children and many have chosen to freeze their eggs.

An eye-catching stall in a large department store in the South Korean capital Seoul looks like any other retail store. This is actually a high-end medical facility that specializes in egg freezing for women who wish to delay their fertility plans.

Lim Eun-young, 34 years old, an office worker in Seoul, said: “TOh, and my boyfriend has only known each other for a few months. We start looking for a home and planning to get married, all of which will take a considerable amount of time. So now is not a good time for me to get married. I feel secure when I freeze my eggs in good condition so I can have a healthy baby in the future“.

Ms. Lim is one of 1,200 women who have eggs frozen at the facility in 2021. This number has doubled from the previous year.

The cost of living, housing and education in Seoul has skyrocketed, causing many couples to postpone marriage and postpone plans to have children.

Financial pressure is high, Korean women freeze eggs to delay childbirth - Photo 1.

Egg freezing in the Fertility Research Laboratory at the Father Reproduction Center in Bundang, South Korea. (Photo: Reuters)

Cho So-young, 32, a nurse in Seoul, said: “Of course I want to get married and have kids, but right now I have other more important priorities in my life.“.

The cost of egg freezing is about 1,300 to more than 2,200 USD (equivalent to about 30 to 50 million VND) depending on health status. They also have to pay an additional maintenance fee each year.

Lim Eun-young shared, “We’ve all seen how expensive it can be to raise children, all of which are reflected in the fact that there have been fewer weddings and fewer couples giving birth in recent years.“.

According to some sociologists, the Korean government should take an open look at women’s right to give birth freely. Currently, the Korean government allows women to actively freeze eggs, but then they can only use eggs when they are legally married.

Professor Jung Jae-hoon, Social Welfare Research, Seoul Women’s University, commented: “I think the choice to have a child is a woman’s right and that right should be fully recognized, regardless of whether she is married or not.“.

South Korea’s Ministry of Gender Equality and Family said it is working on further measures to promote a sustainable family culture and increase the country’s birth rate.

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