'Korean-style NASA' Space Aviation Agency to Open by Late May... Challenges in Staffing and Budget

Ministry of Science and ICT Officially Begins Establishment Process Including Staffing and Budget
Need to Secure 300 Personnel... Expected to Include Foreigners and Dual Nationals Such as Former NASA Staff
Targeting Budget Equivalent to 0.2% of GDP by 2045
Requires Government-wide Budget Support

The Ministry of Science and ICT began steps at the end of May to open the Space Aviation Agency. The ministry plans to ensure that the Space Aviation Agency can start its operations smoothly through prompt follow-up measures such as establishing subordinate laws, transferring organizations, securing budgets and personnel, and preparing office buildings, but it also faces the challenge of securing adequate personnel and budgets.

Minister Lee Jong-ho of the Ministry of Science and ICT is briefing on the establishment of the Space Aviation Agency on the 11th. Photo by Baek Jong-min

On the 11th, Minister Lee Jong-ho of the Ministry of Science and ICT explained the follow-up measures following the passage of the law establishing the Space Aviation Agency at the National Assembly at the Government Seoul Office. Minister Lee said, "Through the newly established Space Aviation Agency, we will nurture dreams and hopes together with the people, enhance competitiveness with industry-academia-research collaboration, and pioneer a new future together with the world."

The Ministry of Science and ICT expects the Space Aviation Agency to be established around May 27 or 29, four months after the promulgation of the establishment bill, considering the promulgation schedule. During the slightly over four months, about 300 personnel must be organized.

Minister Lee explained that the Space Aviation Agency's personnel will be composed of about 200 researchers and 100 administrative staff. Lee Jae-hyung, head of the Ministry of Science and ICT's Space Aviation Agency Establishment Promotion Team, said, "Since about 1,500 personnel are produced domestically every year, there will be no shortage of personnel," but it remains uncertain whether enough experts meeting the government's standards can be hired. Minister Lee also explained that personnel from research organizations under the Space Aviation Agency, such as the Korea Aerospace Research Institute and the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, could also work at the Space Aviation Agency through open recruitment.

The key to securing personnel is term-appointed public officials who are experts, including the head of the Space Aviation Agency. The special law for the Space Aviation Agency stipulates that to resolve difficulties in securing personnel, domestic and foreign experts, including foreigners, can be hired as term-appointed public officials. Special personnel measures are applied, such as exceptional compensation and relaxation of stock blind trust requirements for term-appointed public officials. Procedures for employment or work in related fields after retirement for term-appointed public officials have also been eased.

Minister Lee said, "There are many excellent talents overseas as well," adding, "We can hire people who have worked at NASA or Koreans with dual citizenship, and there are many outstanding talents in Japan, Russia, India, and other countries." This indicates that the hiring of overseas experts is anticipated.

The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to prepare support measures for residential and transportation conditions to facilitate the early settlement of excellent experts in Sacheon, Gyeongsangnam-do, the planned site for the Space Aviation Agency, but there are concerns that this could also become an obstacle to securing personnel.

A ministry official explained that Gyeongsangnam-do has announced large-scale support, so residential conditions will be greatly improved in the future, but there are concerns that the candidate sites for the Space Aviation Agency proposed by Gyeongsangnam-do may not be suitable in terms of accessibility, especially as efforts to strengthen cooperation with overseas partners are underway.

Securing the budget is also a long-term task. The Ministry of Science and ICT plans to use contingency funds this year for preparatory budgets such as rent before the opening of the Space Aviation Agency and for agency operation budgets in consultation with the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and to prepare the budget request for the Space Aviation Agency's jurisdiction by May next year. Although it was decided to establish an aerospace fund in the long term, its implementation has been postponed for two years, and how to attract and operate the fund remains a challenge.

The Ministry of Science and ICT has set a goal of government investment of 4 trillion won, about 0.2% of the gross domestic product (GDP) by 2045, to enter the top five space powers and achieve a 10% share of the global aerospace industry. This requires a significant increase compared to the current 0.04% of GDP (700 billion won). Coordination within government ministries such as the Ministry of Economy and Finance is necessary to secure investment budgets. This means that active government support is essential for securing the investment budget.

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