By Kim Se-jeong
Staff reporter
Public administration experts urged the Lee administration to shed light on "regulatory reforms" that are non-economic issues, Thursday.
Scholars gathered in Seoul for a seminar shared the view that the reforms geared toward creating jobs, preventing disasters and stimulating "green growth" should be dealt with as priorities.
The seminar was jointly organized by the Korea Institute of Public Administration and the Korea Society for Regulatory Studies.
The seminar offered a clear indication that the Korean economy is well on the road to recovery.
The Lee Myung-bak administration has made deregulation and regulatory reform related to the economy its main aim from the outset.
Attracting overseas capital was clearly the goal of the country's top executive.
In part, Lee has witnessed a significant increase in the amount of foreign investment into Korea. However, the ruling sentiment in the foreign business community is that a wall of regulations exists, obstructing foreign companies doing business in Korea.
Climate change was another major issue. Lee announced his proud "green growth" slogan. Yet, as Kim Jeong-hae, a researcher at the institute criticized, regulations aren't balanced in stimulating economic growth rates and protecting the environment.
"Marking a fine balance between economic development and protecting the environment is very important," she said.
In terms of social regulations, corruption has always been a driving force.
The recent bribery case surrounding the prosecutors' office has pushed Lee to vow to push for reforms to prevent such occurrences in the future.
Regulatory reform in relation to job creation is no longer a new topic. Presenters have urged regulatory reforms that would in fact create a healthy job market.
Korea is short on jobs that are favored by a more-educated population. White-color jobs are highly competitive, whereas blue-color jobs suffer from a lack of workers.
A low birthrate and aging society are emerging as substantial threats to the labor market in the future, for which a long-term solution needs to be found.