Participants pose during a matchmaking program arranged by the North Gyeongsang Provincial Government in this July file photo. Courtesy of North Gyeongsang Province

Municipal administrations have been scrambling to host matchmaking events to help boost the country's ever-falling birthrates, but criticism is rising over their effectiveness, according to critics, Thursday.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government is arranging a dating program for 100 unmarried men and women on Sebitseom on the Han River, Nov. 23, featuring a river yacht tour, recreational games and workshops on dating psychology and one-on-one conversations.

Couples matched on the spot will be provided with dating tickets worth up to 10 million won ($7,254).

According to data collected from municipalities by Rep. Lee Yeon-hee of the Democratic Party of Korea, at least 30 local governments across the country have led 34 such matchmaking initiatives this year.

Normally, these events are held for one or two days in the form of a group meeting where dozens of men and women gather and visit tourist attractions and attend a wine party and cooking classes together, similar to popular matchmaking reality programs on television.

The departments in charge of these events are mainly municipalities' divisions responsible for tackling low birthrates and related budgets from tens of millions to more than 100 million won to organize such programs.

People participate in a matchmaking event called Solo Mon's Choice, hosted by Seongnam City in Gyeonggi Province, July 9. Courtesy of Seongnam City Government

While some couples actually end up marrying each other on these occasions, it is pointed out that such initiatives are neither effective nor sustainable in general.

"A total of 4,060 people have participated in matchmaking programs run by local governments over the past three years, but only 24 people ended up married," the lawmaker said during an Assembly audit on the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, urging the ministry to "send an official letter to the local governments to stop the senseless measures to tackle the low birthrate."

A number of local governments have suspended the project, mostly citing ineffectiveness and difficulties finding female participants.

Several local governments, including Jincheon County of North Chungcheong Province, Seogwipo City of Jeju Island, Haman County of North Gyeongsang Province, Gapyeong County of Gyeonggi Province and Tongyeong City of South Gyeongsang Province, suspended their projects due to "the imbalance in gender ratio and the low number of female applicants."

Some municipalities even attempted to fill the gap with female government officials.

For instance, at a 2022 event in Haenam County, South Jeolla Province, only one out of 15 women who joined the event, was a voluntary participant; and eight out of 14 involuntarily participating were female employees at the public health center organizing the event. At the same event in 2019, also only one out of 16 female participants was there by choice.

A group of female public servants were also forced to attend such matchmaking events organized by the local government in North Gyeongsang Province, due to a lack of women participating, according to Lee.

Data shows that young women have been leaving these rural conservative regions in recent years, as they offer little career and life prospects for them.

The number of net migrants among women aged 20 to 34 who moved from the southeastern region to the Seoul metropolitan area increased from 4,819 in 2015 to 12,816 in 2020.

In terms of gender ratio, which represents the ratio of men per one woman in their 20s, the figures stood at 1.33 in North Gyeongsang Province, 1.31 in Ulsan and 1.28 in both Gangwon and South Gyeongsang provinces last year.

Furthermore, Korean women in general are becoming less willing to date, marry and have children than men.

According to the results of the 2023 Marriage Awareness Survey conducted by Korea Research in June last year, only 18 percent of women aged 18 to 29 said matchmaking arrangements were "necessary," much lower than 51 percent of the male respondents.