The government plans to push for a set of new policies to help North Korean defectors settle in South Korea. 

Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon revealed the plan in a speech at a forum held at the National Assembly on Monday to discuss the government’s education policies for teenage defectors. 

Cho emphasized the need for such policies, saying that helping the 31-thousand North Korean defectors in the country to adapt will also help South Korea grow into a better community and prepare for a future in which it will live together peacefully with the North. 

He said the role of education is particularly important and that improving the educational environment for young defectors will be the most important part of the new policies.