Government to unveil plan on relocating ministries to provinces on Wednesday

The South Korean government will unveil its plan on Wednesday to move central administrative agencies and public institutions to regional areas, including the agencies it intends to target and the direction of the relocation policy.

The Prime Minister’s Office said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Han Seong-sook and ministers from relevant departments would attend a news conference at the government complex in Seoul. The briefing will cover the relocation of administrative and public institutions, as well as reforms to public-sector functions.

The Financial Services Commission, Personal Information Protection Commission and Ministry of Gender Equality and Family have been mentioned as possible candidates for relocation among central government agencies. The government has not indicated whether financial public institutions such as the Financial Supervisory Service, Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation and Korea Development Bank will receive specific relocation plans at the briefing.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which is leading the relocation of public institutions, is collecting views from the agencies concerned. It is working under a principle of minimizing the number of institutions that remain in Seoul. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has traditionally handled relocations of central administrative agencies, while the land ministry has overseen moves involving public institutions.