51 Billion KRW Cut from Underexecuted Expenses and Management Fees
Reorganization of Subject Structure... Introduction of Performance-Oriented Budget System
Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Park Bo-gyun is attending the National Assembly audit of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism held on the 5th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
The reckless management and flawed budget system of the Korea Press Foundation are being corrected. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on the 3rd that it has reformed the government advertising fee accounting after inspection. It reduced the budget by 5.1 billion won for under-executed expenses and general administrative costs, and reorganized the account structure to prevent indiscriminate budget transfers. Minister Park Bo-gyun of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism stated, "Government advertising fees were outside the scope of supervision and control because they were not subject to National Assembly review during the budget formulation process," adding, "We will thoroughly manage the funds so that they are used more efficiently and contribute to the development of the press."
Government advertising fees are a major source of funding for the Korea Press Foundation. They have steadily increased from 72.6 billion won in 2018 to 103.5 billion won last year. However, more weight has been placed on institutional operating expenses rather than substantive project development, and the outdated classification of accounts by department, division, and item has been used as is, frequently raising the need for reorganization. Accordingly, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism approved this year's government advertising fees at 101.4 billion won, 2.1 billion won less than last year. Considering the 3 billion won increase in the Korea Press Foundation’s contribution for the regional newspaper development fund transfer, this represents a net reduction of 5.1 billion won compared to the previous year.
A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official explained, "We cut current expenses by 10% and business promotion expenses by 15%, which is a stronger reduction than the 'Public Institution Innovation Guidelines' recommending cuts of over 3% and 10%, respectively." The official added, "The 'Government Advertising Collaboration Project,' which had poor execution rates, was also reduced from 12 billion won last year to 8.4 billion won this year, and the 'Our Local News Creator Training Project,' which was similar to and overlapped with the regional newspaper development fund, was abolished."
The Ministry also reorganized the account structure to prevent indiscriminate budget transfers. It introduced a performance-oriented budget system and increased the number of detailed projects from sixteen to twenty-three. The budget for 'Media Startup Support (700 million won)' was increased by 200 million won, and funding for the regional newspaper development fund (6 billion won) was secured, expanding support for the press. A Ministry official stated, "We will also closely review budget usage during the upcoming settlement process to ensure that tax money is used without waste."
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