Government to Reform Routine Subsidy Projects... Restructuring 199 Projects

On the 14th, Andogeol, Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance, Holds the '3rd Subsidy Management Committee' Meeting

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The government is undertaking a restructuring process to abolish or consolidate 199 projects out of 461 subsidy programs subject to evaluation.

On the 14th, the Ministry of Economy and Finance announced that it held the '3rd Subsidy Management Committee' chaired by Deputy Minister Ando Geol to discuss and approve the extension evaluation plan for subsidy projects.

The restructuring rate based on the number of projects is 43.2%, the highest level in the past three years. The annual restructuring rates were 26.3% in 2019 and 36.1% last year.

The Ministry consolidated similar projects with the same objectives and abolished projects with low necessity for national treasury support among the subsidy programs.

Additionally, the ministry reduced project scales by recalculating demand reflecting environmental changes, adjusting support sizes for projects with poor execution, and strengthening the roles of local governments and the private sector.

Deputy Minister Ahn stated, "This extension evaluation applied stricter principles and standards than ever before as part of the four major strategies for expenditure efficiency, specifically the 'reorganization of habitual subsidy and grant projects.'"

Meanwhile, the final results of the extension evaluation are planned to be submitted to the National Assembly in early September along with next year's budget proposal.