Foreign Ministry official resigns the day after returning from U.S. training funded by taxpayers

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry has spent more than 4 billion won a year sending employees overseas for training, but some recipients have resigned instead of completing the service required afterward. One official reportedly handed in a resignation the day after the training ended.

The ministry sends about 35 employees each year to countries including the United States, Britain, China and Japan. The annual budget for tuition, living expenses and medical insurance ranges from 4.3 billion to 4.7 billion won.

The program aims to develop diplomatic talent. But ministry records obtained by Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Ki-heon show four cases over the past three years in which employees failed to complete their mandatory service and had training costs recovered.

The ministry recovers costs in proportion to the remaining service period. The four cases amounted to 334.1 million won. The requirement is set out under Article 42 of the Enforcement Decree of the Public Officials’ Talent Development Act. The cases have drawn criticism that employees took advantage of taxpayer-funded training without carrying out the commitment attached to it.