[2025 Audit] 1.4 Trillion Won Baekje Royal Capital Restoration Project Drifting for 8 Years Without Legal Basis or Dedicated Organization

Budget Secured at 59%, Execution Rate at 78%
In Sharp Contrast to Silla Royal Capital Project: Special Law and 11-Member Team

At a press conference on the investigation results of Princess Muryeong's Tomb and Royal Tomb Complex held last June at the House of Korea in Jung-gu, Seoul, Hwang Inho, director of the National Buyeo Cultural Heritage Research Institute, presented the findings. Photo by Yonhap News

It has been revealed that the Cultural Heritage Administration has been carrying out the 1.4 trillion won "Baekje Royal Capital Core Heritage Restoration and Maintenance Project" without a legal basis or a dedicated organizational unit. Critics have pointed out that this haphazard administrative approach has led to difficulties in both securing and executing the budget.

According to materials released on October 15 by Assemblyman Park Soo-hyun of the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, the budget secured from the project's launch in 2017 through this year amounts to 420.7 billion won. This is only 59.4% of the government's planned 715.2 billion won. Furthermore, the average budget execution rate stands at just 78.1%, indicating that even the secured funds are not being used effectively.

The Baekje Royal Capital Core Heritage Restoration and Maintenance Project is a large-scale national initiative with a total budget of 1.4028 trillion won (931.7 billion won from the central government and 471.1 billion won from local governments). From 2017 to 2038, the project aims to restore and maintain key heritage sites in the Baekje cultural area, including Gongju, Buyeo, and Iksan, over a period of 22 years. However, Assemblyman Park criticized the lack of a dedicated organization and legal foundation for such a major project, calling it an institutional shortcoming.

In fact, the "Baekje Royal Capital Core Heritage Preservation and Management Project Task Force," which was established in 2017, was disbanded in May during the reorganization of the Cultural Heritage Administration. The prime ministerial directive that served as its legal basis was also abolished, effectively dissolving the task force. In contrast, the Silla Royal Capital Restoration Project operates differently. Under a special law enacted in 2019, the "Silla Royal Capital Core Heritage Restoration and Maintenance Task Force" continues to operate with a legal foundation.

Participants are examining artifacts at the press conference on the investigation results of Princess Muryeong's Tomb and the Royal Tomb Complex held last June at Hanok House in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

Currently, the Baekje Royal Capital project is overseen by the "Baekje Royal Capital Division" under the "Ancient City Preservation and Development Team" of the Cultural Heritage Administration, but the team consists of only five local government-dispatched staff members. The organization, which had twelve members during the task force era, has been reduced to less than half its original size. In contrast, the Silla Royal Capital project maintains a team of eleven, including seven Cultural Heritage Administration employees and four local government-dispatched staff.

This difference is also evident in the systematic planning of the projects. The Silla Royal Capital project is required by special law to establish a "comprehensive plan" every five years and is currently commissioning the 2026-2030 plan. However, the Baekje Royal Capital project has not developed any additional plans since the "Basic Preservation and Management Plan" was established in 2017.

Assemblyman Park emphasized, "The Cultural Heritage Administration has undermined its own institutional foundation while pursuing a long-term national project," and stressed, "To ensure the stability of the Baekje Royal Capital restoration project, it is urgent to enact a special law and restore a dedicated organization." On this day, he sponsored the "Special Act on the Preservation and Management of Baekje Royal Capital Core Heritage" bill. The bill includes provisions for establishing a comprehensive plan for Baekje Royal Capital core heritage, forming a local government consultative body, and providing a legal basis for setting up a project task force.