Government & Civil Society
1. Characteristics
The main focus in the government & civil society has been on the enhancement of public administration and management capacities. Utilizing Korea’s high technological competitiveness, the EDCF’s support in this sector is largely concentrated on projects related to the e-government system, tariff administration system, and crime prevention system.
2. e-Government System
The EDCF’s support for e-government projects aims to improve the quality of public service in general. It also seeks to enhance efficiency and transparency of the government’s administrative procedures through building an effective information and communication infrastructure. The EDCF has supported a total of 8 e-government projects, and assistance in this area accounts for 69.5% of all EDCF-supported projects in the government and civil society sector. In total, KRW 161 billion has been committed to this area and a relatively steady number of loan approvals are seen every year.
3. Tariff Administration System
Among the 13 projects conducted in the sector of government & civil society, the most distinctive project was the Customs Service Computerization Project in the Dominican Republic, which was the very first project to support the development of a customs-clearance system.
The Dominican government has been greatly interested in implementing this system, as it shortens the customs clearance process from the current two days to two hours. This enhanced efficiency will help the nation in its efforts to expand trade, increase tax revenue, and improve transparency. The successful implementation of this project is also a matter of interest for its neighboring Central American countries as they will have to improve their customs clearance system after the conclusion of the Free Trade Agreement with the U.S.
4. Assistance Volume
The EDCF’s loan commitment to this sector is continuously increasing. As of 2007, the amount of loan commitments in the sector reached KRW 232 billion, representing 7.3% of the EDCF’s total loan commitments. The support volume in this area is on the rise since 2004 due to the developing countries’ great confidence in Korea’s IT competitiveness. Since the EDCF’s initial disbursement in the government & civil society sector made in 2001, disbursements in this sector continuously increased, and currently accounts for 5.9% of total EDCF loan disbursements.
[Figure 4-1] EDCF Projects in the Government & Civil Society Sector ( As of 2007)
Prospects
The government & civil society sector will continue to be an essential developmental priority for most developing nations as it directly relates to the efficiency of public administration, which ultimately leads to better public services. Therefore, it is expected that the EDCF will continue to expand its support in the sector.
Source: The Export-Import Bank of Korea. 2008. EDCF Your development partner 1987-2007, History book. Seoul.
