Budgetary and Financial Management Reforms in Korea: Financial Crisis, New Public Management, and Fiscal Administration
| Author | Yeon-Seob Ha |
| DOI | 10.1177/0020852304046205 |
| Published date | 01 September 2004 |
| Date | 01 September 2004 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Budgetary and financial management reforms in Korea:
financial crisis, New Public Management, and fiscal
administration
Yeon-Seob Ha
Abstract
The financial crisis of 1997 has led to a reassessment of the role of the Korean pub-
lic sector and its management policies. The public sector reforms under the Kim
Dae-jung government (1998–2003) were part of a broader movement toward a
more market-oriented economy and lower government debt. One of the core
programs of the Korean public sector reform has been the restructuring of budget-
ary and financial management systems. This article shows that budgetary and
financial management reforms during the Kim Dae-jung administration were
mostly limited to an emphasis on improving technical efficiency in the delivery of
public services through the adoption of market-type mechanisms and several
minor improvements in the arrangements for flexible financial management.
Introduction
The financial crisis of 1997 has led to a reassessment of the role of the Korean
public sector and its management policies. The public sector reforms under the Kim
Dae-jung government were part of a broader movement toward a more market-
oriented economy and lower government debt. One of the core programs of the
Korean public sector reform has been the restructuring of the budgetary and finan-
cial management systems. Korea’s budgetary reform has been an attempt to control
government deficits and increase the efficiency of government spending. The
purpose of this article is to describe the budgetary and financial management reform
programs implemented during the Kim Dae-jung government (1998–2003) and
discuss the achievements and limitations of these reform programs.
Yeon-Seob Ha is a professor in the Department of Public Administration, College of Social
Sciences, Yonsei University, Seoul, Korea.
Copyright © 2004 IIAS, SAGE Publications (London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi)
Vol 70(3):511–525 [DOI:10.1177/0020852304046205]
International
Review of
Administrative
Sciences
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