Science, maritime ministries revived

Kim Yong-joon (right), chairman of the presidential transition team announces reorganization plan for the incoming government, at the team’s office in Samcheong-dong, downtown Seoul, on Tuesday. (Yonhap News)

President-elect Park Geun-hye plans to create a super-ministry in charge of science, information and communications as the incoming leader seeks to promote innovation-based growth, the presidential transition committee announced Tuesday.

Park will also revive the post of deputy prime minister of economy, to be taken on by the minister of strategy and finance, as the top control tower for coordinating economic policies.

A new ministry of maritime affairs and fisheries will be reestablished while the trade section of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade will be merged into the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, the transition committee said.

“The reorganization reflects President-elect Park Geun-hye’s policy philosophy and resolve for public safety and economic revival to usher in an era of people’s happiness,” Kim Yong-joon, committee chairman, said at a press conference.

The bill on the restructuring will be submitted to the National Assembly during its extraordinary session on Feb. 24, officials said.

Despite her conservative political perspective, the plan will enlarge the central government to a structure of 17 ministries, three lower-level ministries and 17 agencies, from the current 15 ministries, two lower ministries and 18 agencies.

Officials said the overhaul is in line with Park’s vision to set up control towers to coordinate policies and reduce divisive, exclusive and overlapping operations among government organizations.

“The reorganization was based on three principles: to minimize the change by only adjusting what absolutely must be changed; to realize the people’s safety and economic prosperity; and to emphasize professionalism and integration,” said Yoo Min-bong, head of the subcommittee for planning and coordination of state affairs.

The biggest change will be the creation of a new ministry for science and information technology.

“With the establishment of the new (tentatively named) Ministry of Future, Creation and Science, we will fortify the capacity of the government in discovering growth engines and creating new jobs,” Kim said.

 

The organization will be responsible for devising long-term plans to promote research and innovation as a key aspect of Park’s vision for growth driven by creative sectors.

It will also have a vice minister in charge of information and communications technology policies. There was speculation earlier of a separate ICT-related body.

President Lee Myung-bak abolished the Science and Technology Ministry and the Information and Communications Ministry five years ago, merging their functions into other government agencies and committees.

The Ministry of Public Administration and Security will be renamed the Ministry of Public Security and Administration to underscore the new government’s emphasis on law and order and public security. The post of special affairs minister for the president will be abolished.

The Korea Food and Drug Administration currently belonging to the Ministry of Health and Welfare will be transferred to the Prime Minister’s Office, with an elevated status. Park had pledged to crack down on distribution of unsafe food, calling it one of the four social evils.

The function of the Small and Medium Business Administration will be fortified by taking over some of the roles taken by the Ministry of Knowledge Economy. Park had highlighted her resolve to help small and medium-sized businesses by eliminating inconveniences and unfairness they face.

Following the restructuring, each relevant organization will undergo name changes and their official English names will be announced later, Yoo said.

While they were excluded from the announcement, Park is also expected to announce the establishments of two other control towers for welfare and foreign affairs.

Taking command of the state’s welfare policies is likely to be the Social Security Commission, which will prioritize the scores of welfare polices and administer their funding.

To coordinate and supervise security affairs, the National Security Office is expected to be placed at Cheong Wa Dae.

The routine government restructuring upon each administration change every five years has been discouraged by various pundits because of the resulting confusion, inefficiency and negative side effects -- such as government agencies devoting much time to defending their existence every five years.

Under the single-term presidency of Korea, every ministry that underwent a reshuffle usually spends one year learning their new roles, and another year on developing new policies, leaving just three years to get down to business.

“It is important for the government restructuring to be perceived as a process rather than a one-time outcome for a step-by-step and detailed road map (for the future),” said Dr. Park Young-won in his report published by the National Assembly Research Service.

Park also suggested determining whether the new role should be better suited to a public or nongovernment body in drawing up new functions and analyzing whether the existing problems occur due to organizational or operational error.

The last government reshuffle made in the U.S. was in 2002, when the Department of Homeland Security was established to enhance anti-terrorism efforts after the Sept. 11 attacks a year before.

Japan has also maintained its administrative structure since its 2001 central government reform.

Since 1992, Korea has gone through a total of eight government overhauls, with 15 cases of integration and five cases of new establishments.

The only organizations that have maintained their original names since 1948 are the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Justice.

Meanwhile, following the government reshuffle, positions of many high-ranking officials are likely to be downsized, sources said.

Park had underscored her vision to expand the number of public servants with relevant experience to better respond to the people’s needs in the education, welfare and police sectors.

By Lee Joo-hee (jhl@heraldcorp.com)