South Korea announced Monday an ambitious plan to privatize over one sixth of its government agencies, and will potentially sell of up to one third of its government-run organizations. According to the Chosun Ilbo news agency:
“A senior presidential official said about 200 of the 305 agencies including some 60 government-funded think tanks will not be subject to reform. But the government will first of all merge or privatize, or drastically restructure about half of the remaining 100 key public agencies. The second and third phase plans will be announced this month too, ‘if at all possible,’ he added. “The government has reportedly singled out agencies which have caused a stir with their reckless spending and other leading public agencies in each industry as primary targets.”
The agencies that might be privatized include Korea’s Arts Council, Newspaper Circulation Service, Culture and Content Agency, and various credit agencies.