ACRC Engaging in Direct Communication with Public Institutions’ Auditors, Thereby Gaining Impetus for Anti-Corruption and Integrity Policy Implementation

From 7 to 9 February, ACRC convened a meeting to discuss anti-corruption policy initiatives with officials from central administrative agencies, local district authorities, and public service-related organizations

(7th Feb. 2023, ACRC)

From 7 to 9 February, a meeting to discuss anti-corruption policy initiatives, including those for eradication of corruption and hiring irregularities in public institutions, with auditors from central administrative agencies, metropolitan and local district governments, and public service-related organizations was held.

Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC, Chairperson Jeon Hyun-Heui) has convened a meeting to discuss anti-corruption and integrity policy initiatives with auditors from public institutions of various levels to share the future direction of the nation’s anti-corruption and integrity policies and to concentrate policy capacities on improving the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI).

Anti-corruption and integrity policy initiatives to be pushed for throughout 2023 would be broadly categorized as follows: the eradication of hiring irregularities in the public sector; the identification and removal of corruption-prone areas, including prevention of government subsidy frauds; the internalization of anti-corruption institutional norms by public institutions, such as the Act on the Prevention of Conflict of Interest Related to Duties of Public Servants and the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act; the reinforcement of anti-corruption capacities in the public sector through comprehensive integrity assessment of public institutions and customized provision of integrity consulting and training; and the mitigation of corruption and acts detrimental to the public interest by facilitating reports on corruption and public interest whistleblowing and bolstering protection and reward for whistleblowers.

The ACRC launched an Integrated Center for Reporting on Hiring Irregularities in January this year that supervises fair hiring of public institutions to guarantee the youth fair job opportunities. In line with this, the ACRC discussed in priority measures to root out corrupt acts and irregularities in the hiring process of public institutions, including the exhaustive investigation into the employment status of public service-related organizations, the measures to support integrity training and consulting, and the establishment of the standard for fair employment of non-public officials by administrative agencies, etc.

In addition, the ACRC called for cooperation in the inspection of the implementation status related to the Act on the Prevention of False Claims for Public Funds and Recovery of Illicit Profits and discussed how to carry out a joint inspection with relevant ministries of areas prone to public subsidy frauds.

The ACRC held the auditor meetings on four occasions by type of public institutions in order of central administrative agencies on 7th, metropolitan governments on 8th, local district governments in the morning of 9th, and public service-related organizations in the afternoon of 9th February. The meeting on 9th February in which the largest number of people participated was held online via the ACRC’s official YouTube channer “Kwonik Vision.”

Furthermore, to facilitate smooth discussion among the participants, the ACRC has shared relevant s prior to the opening of the meeting, collecting opinions and reviewing whether or not the Commission would reflect the opinions into its policies after considering the appropriateness and effectiveness thereof.

The Chairperson of the ACRC, Jeon Hyun-Heui, said, “Improving for six years in a row, Korea hit a record high in the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index published by the Transparency International on Jan. 31. I believe this outcome is the fruit of the efforts made by the public institutions that have pushed ahead with anti-corruption and integrity policies alongside the ACRC,” calling for “concerted efforts among public institutions in the journey toward a bona fide advanced country in the field of anti-corruption.”