The ACRC greatly strengthens integrity education for high-ranking public officials, while enacting the Act on Prevention of Conflict of Interest in Public Office to prevent another LH speculation scandal

- It also plans to distribute Guidelines for Ethical and Compliant Management to enhance integrity of public companies -

(13 April. 2021, ACRC)

Anti-corruption and integrity education for over 2,000 public officials working at public organizations, including the members of the National Assembly, Ministers and Deputy Ministers, and heads of public offices will be greatly expanded and strengthened.

Along with this, the commission implements measures to facilitate integrity education, such as support for ethical and compliant management of companies, including public companies, and expansion of integrity education for future generation, to boost integrity consciousness of public officials and to advance Korea to world’s top 20s in Corruption Perception Index (CPI).

Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (Chairperson: Jeon Hyun-Heui; ACRC) reported measures for reinforcing integrity education to prevent moral hazard of public offices, including LH, and regain trust from general public at the 16th Cabinet meeting and requested active support of each ministry on 13th of this month.

According to this measure, integrity education for high ranking officials, such as the members of the National Assembly, ministers and deputy ministers, heads of local governments, and chairpersons of public institutes, will be strengthened by requiring face-to-face integrity education. Also, there are additional measures, namely disclosing the completion status of integrity education courses by organization, and special education for the organization with unsatisfactory level of completion in integrity education.

Besides, the ACRC will improve accessibility to integrity education for public officials by supporting and connecting with 112 public education and training organizations under public agencies, encompassing both central administrative agencies and local governments, to open their own integrity education courses.

The commission plans to consider feasibility of launching the Center for Promotion of Ethical and Compliant Management (a tentative name) that provides assistance in consultation and education on anti-corruption and ethical management for companies. It also to distribute Guidelines for Ethical and Compliant Management to establish ethical management practice of companies, including public companies, to support ethical and compliant management of public and private companies.

Along with this, the ACRC’s Anti-Corruption Training Institute aims at enrichment of anti-corruption education for our future generation, such as primary and secondary school students who show high effects of education. To this end, customized anti-corruption programs will be developed and distributed for every school. Specifically, an anti-corruption program custom-made for the test-free semester will be provided as a teacher training course.

“Due to the recent LH speculation scandal, demand for the Act on Prevention of Conflict in Public Office as well as ethical management of companies is bigger than ever,” said Chairperson Jeon Hyun-Huei of the ACRC. “The ACRC will make all the efforts to eradicate corruptive practice in our society and infuse the culture of integrity everywhere through measures, such as expansion and reinforcement integrity education for high-ranking public officials, and creation ethical management of companies.”