The number of suicides in the country hit a 13-year high last year.

According to tentative data from Statistics Korea on Wednesday, a total of 14-thousand-439 people died by suicide in 2024, with nearly 40 people taking their own lives each day.

The preliminary figure for last year marks a three-point-three percent increase from the previous year.

It is the largest increase since 2011, when the figure soared to 15-thousand-906.

The country’s suicide rate reached its highest level in eleven years in 2024, with 28-point-three cases per 100-thousand people.

In 2023, the government pledged to cut the suicide rate in half within ten years from 25-point-two, the figure recorded in 2022.