Jamboree Incident in Numbers... 99 Overseas Trips, the Counterattack of Budget Leakage

117.1 Billion Invested in Jamboree... Controversy Over Inadequate Facilities
Criticism of 'Budget Waste' Amid Suspicions of 'Extravagant Trips'

Controversy over 'extravagant overseas trips' has arisen surrounding the 2023 Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree. This criticism overlaps with previous controversies about the lack of essential infrastructure at the Jamboree campsite, leading to accusations of inappropriate use of a budget exceeding 100 billion KRW.

It has been confirmed that officials from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Jeonbuk Province, and other related agencies undertook about 90 overseas business trips under the pretext of preparing for the Jamboree. According to JoongAng Ilbo, since Saemangeum was selected as a Jamboree candidate site in September 2015, five institutions have included 'Jamboree' in the titles of their trip reports. Jeonbuk Provincial Office made 55 trips, Buan County Office 25, Saemangeum Development Agency 12, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family 5, and Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs 2, totaling 99 trips.

British scouts participating in the 2023 Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree are leaving the campsite in Buan-gun, Jeonbuk on the 6th. Photo by Yonhap News

Among the overseas inspection locations, many places appeared unrelated to the Jamboree or seemed to be for tourism purposes. Five officials from Jeonbuk Provincial Office went on a 6-night, 8-day trip to Switzerland and Italy in May 2018 under the name of 'investigating successful Jamboree hosting cases.' The trip included tourist attractions such as Interlaken, Lucerne, Milan, and Venice, but these countries have no experience hosting a Jamboree.

Officials from Buan County also went on a cruise trip. After the Jamboree hosting was confirmed, Buan County made two trips under the pretext of 'promoting the Jamboree hosting site through the establishment of a cruise base port.'

This has led to criticism of budget waste. Previously, the Jamboree faced criticism for lacking essential infrastructure after the event, but the budget was not spent where it was truly needed. The total Jamboree budget was 117.1 billion KRW, which is three times the 38 billion KRW budget of the 2015 Japan World Jamboree and more than ten times the 9.8 billion KRW budget of the 1991 Goseong World Jamboree.

However, the Jamboree Organizing Committee refuted claims that the campsite facilities received a small budget due to expenses such as business trips and operating costs. On the 7th, the committee stated in a press release that out of the 117.1 billion KRW Jamboree project budget, 39.5 billion KRW was spent on campsite construction.

Specifically, 26.5 billion KRW was allocated for infrastructure, main assembly hall construction, and installation of forced drainage facilities, while 13 billion KRW was spent on camping convenience facilities such as toilets, showers, water supply stations, and gravel paving to prevent flooding. The budget used for personnel and operating expenses totaled 8.4 billion KRW, with 5.5 billion KRW for personnel costs and 2.9 billion KRW for operating costs.

People are looking at the 2023 Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree campsite at Jamboree Park in Buan-gun, Jeonbuk, on the 6th. Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, Kim Ki-hyun, leader of the People Power Party, stated that he would scrutinize whether the Jamboree budget was used appropriately. On the 7th, he wrote on his Facebook, "After the Jamboree ends, a proper settlement must be conducted," adding, "The government and local governments have invested over 100 billion KRW directly for the Jamboree preparation. If the budget had been properly executed, the infrastructure should have been top-class, and it would have received praise as the best Jamboree ever."

He continued, "Shockingly, a significant portion of the '1 trillion KRW Jamboree budget' has been excessively spent on unnecessary purposes or even squandered on extravagant overseas trips," expressing deep regret. "What is this behavior on official trips funded by taxpayers? This seems like a national scam and possibly embezzlement of public funds," he criticized.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.