The government will launch a new basic pension program from July that aims to give monthly cash support to 70 percent of senior citizens in the country, officials said Sunday.
The pension plan was one of the key campaign pledges made by President Park Geun-hye in the 2012 campaign. She originally pledged to give 200,000 won (US$197) to everyone over 65, but the government offered a compromise plan to support only those in the lower 70 percent income bracket, citing budgetary constraints.