The government will increase support for young workers employed in small-and medium-sized enterprises(SMEs) as well as entrepreneurs, as part of efforts to curb the highest level of youth unemployment seen since the Asian Financial Crisis.

Various government ministries on Thursday released a four-point plan which aims to cut the jobless rate for youth from the current nine-point-eight percent to under eight percent over the next four years. 

The government plans to strengthen support for SMEs that hire new full-time workers by subsidizing one-third of their salaries, as well offer income tax exemptions for five years if they are under 34 years of age.

In a bid to increase the income for young SME workers to the level of salaries offered by conglomerates, the government will aim to reduce residential and transportation costs for youths employed in SMEs through subsidies and loans.

Another core area is nurturing new start-ups by increasing subsidies for young entrepreneurs to up to 100 million won as well as offering five-years of corporate and income tax exemptions.

Authorities will also focus on increasing new job opportunities both locally and overseas through intermediary and mentoring programs, as well as offer various vocational and specialized programs to enhance skill sets.

The government aims to allocate a supplementary budget to initiate the plan, with the goal of creating between 180 to 220-thousand jobs by the year 2021.