Global General

Special

Newsmaker

Asia Pacific

America

Middle East

Europe

Africa

S.Korea plans to reform state-owned firms

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-08-11 14:08

SEOUL -- South Korean Finance Minister Kang Man-soo said Monday that the government plans to privatize or restructure 33 state-owned firms in the future.

"We will select 33 firms as the first part of the reform plan," Finance Minister Kang Man-soo said ahead of the government-party meeting Monday.

"The remaining public firms will operate under a renewed motto to provide cheap and high-quality service to the public," he said.

The South Korean government will start implementing the plan by privatizing six companies, including the Korea Real Estate Investment Trust, KIBO Technology Advancing Capital, Korea Construction Management Corp. and New Seoul Country Club, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency said.

Reforming the public sector was one of the key campaign agendas of President Lee Myung-bak, who initially planed to overhaul up to 100 state-owned firms.

However, the implementation of the plan was delayed due to strong resistance from the opposition party, who gained greater power after the Lee government's unpopular decision in April to resume imports of U.S. beef, as well as the workers in the public sector who fear massive layoff, Yonhap said.

The ruling Grand National Party has been demanding the execution of the reform plan, citing public firm's inefficient management and overlapping functions, Yonhap said.