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Information Disclosure(ID)
Ministry of security and Public Administration

A. Problem Analysis

 1. What was the problem before the implementation of the initiative?
⎕People’s interest in information managed by public institutions has increased. As our society has developed into an information-based society, people’s interest in public institutions which hold and manage various kinds of information ranging from basic urban information on housing, roads, water and sewage and transportation to information on overall daily life like education, welfare, health and so on has increased. In an information-based era where society values the importance of information and our government pursues goals to secure people's participation in state affairs, increase transparency of the government and ensure people’s rights to know, an emphasis has been placed on the belief that people have an indispensable “right to know” and it is recognized as an essential tool to realize the doctrine of democratic sovereignty. At the same time, there has also been an increasing demand for people’s right to access public information by social institutions and political parties. ⎕Laws and system for request and process of information disclosure were needed. With increased value of information and need for equal distribution of information, a local government of Republic of Korea (Cheong-ju City) enacted the Municipal Ordinance of Administrative Information Disclosure in 1992 and enacted and enforced the Management Guidelines of Administrative Information Disclosure (Instruction of Prime Minister No. 288) in March 1994. However, since the legal background was not sufficient at that time, laws and a system for request and process of information disclosure were needed. ⎕Lack of government-wide information disclosure system caused various problems. While public request for information disclosure has increased sharply from 25,475 cases in 1998 to 120,879 in 2005, a lack of accessibility and inconvenience of use caused various problems with practical disclosure of information.For instance, since most public institutions provided only limited lists of major documents with a different disclosure standard, it was difficult to identify which institution held the desired and necessary information. Therefore, unnecessary requests for information disclosure were made consistently. In addition, while some services for preparing a request for information disclosure, such as summiting a request, receiving a notice on whether or not to disclose the information and raising an objection were provided online, procedures after the decision to disclose information, like identification of an applicant and fee payment, were still required to be made offline. Furthermore, most public institutions were having a hard time due to the increased workload. For example, they were collecting and providing lists of major documents by each department and agency manually. Procedures that required approval of other parties such as a notification of deciding on whether to disclose information or extending a period for deciding on whether to disclose information were being processed both on an electric approval system and an information disclosure system. That is, since there was no integrated system in place that managed both on and off line requests for information disclosure, it was hard to grasp the whole and current situation and take a systematic management approach.

B. Strategic Approach

 2. What was the solution?
⎕The Korean government laid the legal groundwork to live up to the expectations of people’s request for information disclosure. Since the 1980’s, the necessity for an information disclosure system had been raised by academia and discussions at government level started in the early 1990’s. As Cheong-ju City established the Municipal Ordinance of Administrative Information Disclosure in 1992 and enacted and enforced the Management Guidelines of Administrative Information Disclosure in May 1994, the system took its basic shape. In 1994, comprised of ten experts from academia, media and legal circles, the Deliberation Committee of Information Disclosure Act was established. After many deliberations, public hearings, government-ruling party consultations and an advance legislation notice, the Official Information Disclosure Act was enacted and promulgated on December 31, 1996 and entered into force in 1998. With an increase in people’s requests for information disclosure and active management of the system, the government laid the legal groundwork for an electronic disclosure of information system in 2004, and established an Informatization Strategy Plan (ISP) to provide a full-scale online service of information disclosure and computerized the whole information disclosure business process. ⎕The Korean government set the foundation for convenient use of information disclosure. In 2004, the government amended the Information Disclosure Act to lay down applicable provisions to offer consumer-based services and ensure people’s convenient and fast access to information of public institutions, and advanced the information disclosure system by integrating individual information disclosure processing systems run by each government agency. In April 2006, it opened an Integrated Information Disclosure System (www.open.go.kr) to offer full-scale online services. After three upgrade projects were completed before 2008, the system is now in operation, providing a one-stop service for searching information lists, requesting information disclosure, paying fees, as well as perusing information in public institutions such as central administrative agencies, local governments, education offices and so on. ⎕The Korean government established a management system for consumer-based information disclosure services. The government integrated various search windows of information lists into a single channel. It connected each public institution’s electronic document system together and established integrated lists by enabling automatic collection of information lists produced by individual public institutions. By doing so, people can enjoy full online services without visiting an institution to request information disclosure and acquire the relevant information. Also, public officials can now handle information disclosure business in a more effective manner with work continuity through the system. In addition to the online request for information disclosure, the integrated system also made it possible to process an offline request for information disclosure through the online service so that various processes, registrations and statistics can now be managed in a fully computerized and integrated fashion. ⎕The Korean government budgeted for the establishment of an Integrated Information Disclosure System and improved management efficiency. To establish the Integrated Information Disclosure System, a total of 6.4 billion KRW or approximately 5.8million dollars was invested over three steps, 2.4 billion KRW (2.1 million dollars) in 2005, 2.23 billion KRW (2 million dollars)in 2006, and 1.75 billion KRW (1.5 million dollars)in 2007. The system prevented overlapping investment which can arise by individual system development in each institution and reduced operating costs by unifying system management. As of 2013, the Integrated Information Disclosure System is now operating in 18,000 public institutions (45 central administrative institutions, 244 local governments, 194 education offices, 17,681 affiliated agencies, and 361 public corporations) and now efficiently provides the services for the dramatic increase in requests for disclosing information since the online services was launched in 2006, reaching 333,000 cases in 2012.
 3. How did the initiative solve the problem and improve people’s lives?
⎕Information disclosure is an IT-based government-wide system that provides one-stop public services. Information disclosure makes the whole request procedures more convenient. Thanks to an integrated channel for the searching and perusing of information lists, people can easily obtain necessary information without the hassle of visiting each public institution in person. It allows people to check the processing status on a real-time basis and informs the status through SMS or e-mail. Also, it facilitates the fee payment process with electronic payment services and enables people to peruse disclosed information on the web and download it in various types. In addition, it provides both a personalized inquiry service about request results and a simplified requesting procedure, so that an applicant can summit a request right after searching the information lists. ⎕Information disclosure offers even source information of public institutions for the first time in the world. This initiative shifted the paradigm of public institution’s disclosing information from a request-based supplier-oriented selective disclosure to a proactive and preemptive consumer-oriented disclosure. That is, it provides people with the electronic information managed by public institutions in advance before people submit a request and in turn, raises the operational transparency of state affairs.

C. Execution and Implementation

 4. In which ways is the initiative creative and innovative?
⎕The Korean government enacted and amended acts to lay a foundation for information disclosure. The government enacted and promulgated the Official Information Disclosure Act (“Information Disclosure Act”) on December 31, 1996 which entered into force in 1998. After the enforcement of the act, the government amended it in 2004 to provide legal grounds for electronic information disclosure and to make information disclosure easier to use by inserting articles that mandate public institution’s preparation and provision of information lists, introduction of prior official announcement of administrative information and establishment and operation of the Information Disclosure Committee and shorten the period of decision-making on whether or not to disclose information from 15 days to 10 days. In 2006, the government obliged allowing public institutions to establish the detailed criteria for the scope of information subject to non-disclosure to prevent arbitrary non-disclosure, and launched the Integrated Information Disclosure System (www.open.go.kr) in April and began full-scale online services. In 2011, the act was amended to encourage public institutions to disclose information in advance and designate a responsible officer for information discloser in order to change public institution’s way of disclosing information from “a request based” to “a preemptive and active” disclosure. In 2013, the public institutions subject to information disclosure were expanded to include committees of administrative agencies and institutions funded and subsidized by central and local governments. So far, while the administrative institutions should provide only the information lists kept and managed by the institution, an amendment was also made to such provisions to make the institutions disclose even source information on the Internet, which will enter into force in March, 2014. ⎕Foundation for online service of IT-based government-wide information disclosure was set. After laying the groundwork for an electronic disclosure of information system and launching an Informatization Strategy Plan (ISP) in 2004, the government established the Integrated Information Disclosure System in May 2008 after three phases of the establishment project had started in October, 2005. After the establishment of the Integrated Information Disclosure System, it became possible to make an online request for disclosing information to 312 public institutions including central and local governments and education offices. Furthermore, people could benefit from a wide range of integrated services as they could pay fees online, peruse and download information with various file viewer programs and search information lists. Since March 2008, the improvement projects of the Integrated Information Disclosure System have been continuously carried out and the scope of public institutions which should voluntarily disclose information lists has expanded. Now, discussions are underway to include public corporations in the scope so that they can offer one-stop online requests for information disclosure to the people. ⎕The establishment project of the Integrated Information Disclosure System has been developed as follows. - October 2004 ~ April 2005: The government established the Informatization Strategy Plan (ISP) to expand online information disclosure of administrative information. - October 2005 ~ March 2008: Three phases of the Information Disclosure System establishment were completed. - 2009: Web accessibility and a standard for the disabled and elderly were adopted. - 2010: System improvement projects to raise applicant’s convenience were conducted. - 2011 ~ 2012: The system was upgraded to raise applicant’s convenience. - January 2013: A mobile information disclosure service started. - September 2013 ~ December 2013: Source information disclosure system was established.
 5. Who implemented the initiative and what is the size of the population affected by this initiative?
⎕Information disclosure was envisioned in the 1980s. Since the 1980’s, the necessity for an information disclosure system had been raised by academia and discussions at government level started in the early 1990’s. As Cheong-ju City established the Municipal Ordinance of Administrative Information Disclosure in 1992 and enacted and enforced the Management Guidelines of the Administrative Information Disclosure in May 1994, the system took its basic shape. In 1994, comprised of ten experts from academia, media and legal circles, the Deliberation Committee of Information Disclosure Act was established. After many deliberations, public hearings, government-ruling party consultations and an advance legislation notice, the Official Information Disclosure Act was enacted and promulgated on December 31, 1996 and entered into force in 1998. ⎕MSPA manages related policies and laws and regulations. The Ministry of Security and Public Administration (MSPA), the implementer of information disclosure, has been establishing information disclosure policies and has managed related laws and regulations. The National Information Society Agency, a supporting agency, is in charge of managing the establishment project for the Information Disclosure System (www.open.go.kr), and central and local governments and other public institutions are also engaging in establishment and management of the Information Disclosure System, making suggestions regularly for both information disclosure and the system. ⎕PMO and MSF are in cooperation. Major stakeholders are the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the Ministry of Strategy and Finance (MSF). The PMO sets the level of information disclosure as an evaluation index of a public institution for government performance evaluation and the MSF budgets for the information disclosure along with national information projects. Central and local governments and public institutions are using the information disclosure system for business handling, utilizing the system’s statistics and cooperating together to make an annual information disclosure report.
 6. How was the strategy implemented and what resources were mobilized?
⎕Resources were mobilized through e-government support projects. The Korean government established and pursued centralized implementation plans to prepare an operational foundation for information disclosure and vitalize and improve operation of the Integrated Information Disclosure System. After laying a legal groundwork for electronic information disclosure in 2004, the Korean government established a government-wide ISP for “Administrative Information Disclosure.”In April 2006, the government launched the Integrated Information Disclosure System (www.open.go.kr) and began full-scale online services.The establishment projects of the system were carried out in three phases to 2008 and a budget of 6.4 billion KRW or about 5.8 million dollars was invested. Since the launch of the information disclosure system, the government has increased the number of public institutions participating in the information disclosure system and has earmarked a special budget to address any inconvenience experienced by the public or responsible officials. From 2009, the government has invested 460 million KRW or about 410,000 dollars annually in operation and maintenance of the information disclosure system. In particular, the government has a plan to allocate an additional 6 billion KRW or 5.4 million dollars to information disclosure for 2014 to 2016 ⎕With the resources, it was possible to build an integrated information disclosure channel and a centralized management system. With a strong commitment and initiative to raise convenience of information disclosure, the Korean government has implemented information projects since 2006 to make the whole information disclosure process online and fully computerized. Thanks to those efforts, the standard of processing procedures for information disclosure is now in place and each public institution follows the standard. Therefore, it became possible to process information disclosure with consistency and has a clear understanding about the current information disclosure status of each institution. Likewise, by operating a government-wide integrated information disclosure system, the government can save overlapping costs which may occur when individual systems are developed and managed by separate institutions. Also, people can now enjoy fast accessibility and convenience of use through the unified information disclosure channel.
 7. Who were the stakeholders involved in the design of the initiative and in its implementation?
⎕The public awareness of rights to be informed and participation in government administration has increased. Despite a sharp increase in information disclosure requests, the information disclosure rate has also steadily risen and been maintained at over 90 percent. In the assessment of the current operational state of central and local governments, it is analyzed that the information disclosure system has been well established based on the institutional foundation for pre-information disclosure and improved capacity of public officials in charge. Also, the academic world recognizes that the increased usage rate of information disclosure service despite dramatic growth of requests for information disclosure is attributed to constant efforts to improve the information disclosure system along with raised public awareness of rights to be informed and participation in state affairs. ⎕Convenience has been provided for the public through the online service. In 2006, it started to be possible to request information disclosure online through the information disclosure system (www.open.go.kr). In addition, the “Pre-Information Disclosure Service” has been provided to offer information of public institutions before public requests are made. As the number of institutions using the information disclosure system rapidly increased to 18,000 in 2012, almost all disclosure requests have been applied online. That has improved public access to information and made requesting more convenient. Furthermore, an audio guidance and keyboard processing system started to be offered from 2009 for physically challenged people and elderly citizens. Since 2012, a mobile service has been provided and personal information leaks have been prevented for better functionality and convenience. ⎕Mindset of information disclosure and transparency in the public sector has been enhanced. The Korean government conducts institution assessments of information disclosure on central and local government institutions to encourage active and voluntary participation in information disclosure. By doing so, the government has drawn attention to information disclosure and improved transparency in the public sector. ⎕Quantity and quality of pre-information disclosure has been improved. Within a short period of time, the foundation of the pre-information disclosure system has been established as most of the administrative agencies have reformed their information disclosure menu on their web pages with efforts to present details of information subject to pre-information disclosure, standardize ways of pre-information disclosure, monitor personal information disclosure and enhance evaluation of pre-information disclosure.
 8. What were the most successful outputs and why was the initiative effective?
⎕Management of information disclosure state has been systemized. Since the Information Disclosure Act was implemented in 1998, an annual report on information disclosure has been published. Also, present conditions of operation have been evaluated and the Information Disclosure Committee was established aiming at monitoring the operation of the Information Disclosure System. The number of requests for information disclosure jumped from 26,338 in 1998 to 96,187 in 2004. In 2007, the number rose to 197,617 and 302,332 in 2009. In 2013, more than 350,000 cases are expected to be requested. Under the circumstances, it is necessary to manage the current state of information disclosure annually. Since the introduction of the system, an annual report on information disclosure has been completed and reported to the National Assembly based on collected data such as cases of disclosure and non-disclosure of public institutions, administrative litigations, administrative trials and information disclosure state ofofficial requests and processing conditions. ⎕Evaluation of processing requests for information disclosure at public institutions has been systemized. In 2003, an evaluation of the current state of running the Information Disclosure System was conducted on 48 central administrative institutions for the first time according to the Guidelines of Administrative Information Disclosure. In 2004, the range of evaluation was extended to local governments. In 2008, a “Self-Evaluation” of central administrative institutions and a “Joint Evaluation” of local governments were conducted to raise the effectiveness and transparency of the evaluation according to the Framework Act on Public Service Evaluation in 2008. According to the result, excellent institutions and individuals have been given incentives such as government prizes. Also, best practices and operation knowhow have been presented and shared at workshops for officials in charge of information disclosure. ⎕Consultation for Information Disclosure System has been systemized through the Information Disclosure Committee. In August 2004, the Information Disclosure Committee with nine members and a two-year tenure system was established for the first time to deliberate and coordinate various issues such as policy making for information disclosure, improvement of the system, setting standards, and an evaluation of the current state of operating information disclosure. The committee was launched with experts from academic and legal circles as well as public officials of vice-minister class and now the 5th term of the committee is hosting annual meetings twice a year. It provides consultation and deliberation needed for operation and improvement of the system.
 9. What were the main obstacles encountered and how were they overcome?
⎕The staff in charge resisted the introduction of the information disclosure system due to concerns over a burdensome workload. Staff raised concerns over a rising workload following the adoption of the system and delays in handling their work because stakeholders were expected to propose problems if the work of administrative institutions was disclosed. Therefore, they tended not to disclose information. To change such a trend, the information disclosure level of public institutions has been evaluated and reflected to institution assessment to attract the interests of heads of agencies, and excellent agencies have received incentives according to the evaluation result to maintain information disclosure level. ⎕Low awareness and capacity shortage of officials of individual institutions served as obstacles to the system operation. Frequent changes of persons in charge led to a poor understanding of the work process involved in information disclosure. They presented superficial reasons for non-disclosure of information or answered questions unkindly. Also, institutions made different decisions on the same issue. These are still pointed out as problems. To solve the problems, a “Manual on Information Disclosure” has been produced and distributed since 2006. In addition, regular workshops are hosted for officials in charge and institutions with insufficient information disclosure processes are selected and visited for education. Also, practical education programs are conducted for all public officials. ⎕Establishment and maintenance of the Integrated Information Disclosure System turned out to be a challenging task. In the initial stage, the system was used at central public institutions, local governments and education offices and now it is used at public corporations. Therefore, the need for human resources and the costs for system operation are rising. Accordingly, the MSPA is securing a budget for improvement and maintenance of the system under the consultation with related institutions such as the National Assembly.

D. Impact and Sustainability

 10. What were the key benefits resulting from this initiative?
⎕The initiative has contributed to the settlement and utilization of the information disclosure system. The Integrated Information Disclosure System, the one and only in the world, provides a one-stop service online that covers the whole information disclosure procedures of central public institutions, local governments and education offices from integrated searches, requests for information disclosure, receipts, notices on whether or not to disclose the information, fee payments, to the actual use of the disclosed information. It is recognized as an excellent system compared to those adopted by developed countries earlier. In this context, the system is now contributing to the utilization of the information disclosure by ensuring that the public can have easy and convenient access to the information kept and managed by public institutions. The number of requests for information disclosure rose from 132,964 in 2006 to 301,332 in 2009, a 226 percent increase. In the case of online requests, the number jumped from 60,319 in 2006 to 260,768 in 2009, a 432 percent growth. ⎕The initiative also promotes a mindset of information disclosure and enhances transparency of public institutions. The Korean government is conducting an institution assessment on central administrative institutions and local governments to encourage more active and voluntary information disclosure. By doing so, the government has attracted interest and improved transparency of the public sector. On top of that, it also has made continuous efforts to strengthen professionalism of information disclosure. It has conducted professional education on information disclosure at training agencies for civil servants, workshops as well as visiting education programs to ensure accurate work of institutions subject to information disclosure. Through these efforts, a successful processing rate within the requested handling time has reached 99 percent over the past three years. Likewise, these efforts have resulted in enhancing the information disclosure capacity as well as an active attitude to providing an information disclosure service. Under the circumstances, Korea’s ranking in Transparency International’s annual “Corruption Awareness Index” rose to 39th out of 178 countries, being placed in the top 20 percent with a score of 5.4 in 2010 from 48th out 101 nations with the score of 4.0 in 2000. This accomplishment is attributed to not only efforts to improve integrity of society as a whole but also enhanced transparency of the public sector since the information disclosure system started to be implemented in 1998. ⎕Costs were reduced thanks to the establishment of the Integrated Information Disclosure System. Costs for the establishment and operation of systems at separate institutions have been sharply reduced and the system is operated effectively because of the cost reduction following changes in systems and the improvement of new tasks. Thanks to the establishment and operation of the Integrated Information Disclosure System, the establishment costs were cut by 48.2 billion KRW or approximately 43.4 million dollars and information searching expenses were reduced by 770 million KRW or about 700,000 dollars every year. Also, spending on visiting institutions has been slashed by 3.4 billion KRW or about 3 million dollars annually thanks to online information disclosure and time costs were cut by 14.8 billion KRW or 13.3 million dollars per year owing to the electronic request processing system.
 11. Did the initiative improve integrity and/or accountability in public service? (If applicable)
⎕Information disclosure is a sustainable initiative. Through information disclosure, the Korean government has strived to enhance people’s rights to be informed and improve transparency and credibility of the government. In addition, it is aware of the need to gain constant interest from civic groups and the media and to expand the range of information disclosure. The newly inaugurated government in 2013 also recognizes disclosure and sharing of information kept by public institutions as an important task of the “Government 3.0” initiative which aims to make dramatic changes in the way the government operates. In this context, it is pursuing expansion of the scope of institutions subject to information disclosure, and pre-disclosure of information including source information. The government will extend the range of institutions subject to disclosure of source information and find out more information to be disclosed in advance over the next five years. ⎕The range of institutions that use the Integrated Information Disclosure System can be continuously extended. In 2006, the Integrated Information Disclosure System was mainly used in public institutions. However, now more organizations including public corporations and investment agencies have started to use the system since 2010. Thanks to the further use of the system to process information disclosure related tasks, the public can easily use information disclosure services, while a single window for information disclosure is realized. Now the system is used by 18,000 institutions subject to information disclosure out of a possible 32,000. However, the Ministry of Security and Public Administration, with firm determination, is still trying hard to encourage more institutions to use the system, making sure that the public can use the information disclosure system for free and request information disclosure at all public institutions through its one-stop service. In 2011, Vietnam’s public officials visited Korea to see and learn about the system and the current state of system operation. ⎕The system can be used in other countries. Countries that have not adopted an information disclosure system yet can adjust the system to their own situations and use it referring to Korea’s experience and operation examples. Also, they can benchmark a government-wide information disclosure system and work handling procedures. If they adjust and use the system, they should expect positive results within a short period of time.
 12. Were special measures put in place to ensure that the initiative benefits women and girls and improves the situation of the poorest and most vulnerable? (If applicable)
⎕Information disclosure is expected to contribute to obtaining trust from the public and laying a foundation for “the Creative Economy.” The government’s hard and constant efforts to expand the range of information disclosure are resulting in improved transparency. However, the information disclosure system does not limit by purposes, the number of times and the amount of requests for disclosure, resulting in excessive or repeated requests. That may lead to a decline in the quality of information disclosure service and an increase in unnecessary administrative costs while personal information can be leaked due to the advanced IT technology. Nevertheless, the Korean government has set up and implemented the standard that all information made by public institutions should be disclosed to the public. Such efforts to become a trusted government are expected to contribute to obtaining trust from the public and laying a foundation for “the Creative Economy” for the fulfillment of the “Government 3.0” vision, an information disclosure paradigm of the new government. Public trust on government policy is a significant factor for national development. Public trust depends on communication with people and communication is all about how much the public is informed about policies and tasks of the government. When the public is better informed in advance, distrust and conflict will be prevented.

Contact Information

Institution Name:   Ministry of security and Public Administration
Institution Type:   Government Department  
Contact Person:   You-taek Park
Title:   Deputy Director  
Telephone/ Fax:   +82-2-2100-1841/+82-2-2100-1897
Institution's / Project's Website:  
E-mail:   bsbyt@korea.kr  
Address:   209, Sejong-daero(sejong-ro), Jongno-gu
Postal Code:   110-760
City:   Seoul
State/Province:  
Country:  

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