Board of Audit and Inspection: "Saemangeum Jamboree Incident, Organizing Committee, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and Jeonbuk Province Overall Negligence"

The disruption of the World Scout Jamboree held in Saemangeum, Jeonbuk, in August 2023 was found to have occurred due to the overall lack of capability among the event's organizing committee, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Jeollabuk-do Province, and other promoting entities, according to an audit report.

On the 10th, the Board of Audit and Inspection released the audit report titled "Status of Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree Promotion," stating, "The promoting entities lacked capability and had insufficient awareness of the importance of event preparations such as material procurement, facility installation, and site selection."

According to the report, Jeonbuk Province selected a site unsuitable for camping as a candidate location after only a visual inspection in July 2015, without reviewing various conditions such as whether land reclamation was necessary. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs was found to have used the Farmland Management Fund, which is restricted to purposes directly related to farmland development, to reclaim the Jamboree site, which is designated for tourism and leisure use, despite regulations prohibiting such use of the fund.

Additionally, the organizing committee appointed a retired Ministry of Gender Equality and Family official lacking expertise as the secretary-general, and the proportion of staff with international event experience was only 6.3%, leading to a diagnosis that the team was insufficient to successfully host a large-scale international event.

During the event, essential living services for camping, such as heatwave supplies, were not properly provided, and on-site responses like participant access control were inadequate. Various facilities for landscaping, sanitation, and communications were poorly installed, and the pre-inspection and reporting system for preparation status did not function properly. Furthermore, cases of disciplinary lapses such as contract irregularities and overseas trips for leisure purposes occurred.

Moreover, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family received reports from the organizing committee about the absence of toilets and shower facilities, and despite confirming during on-site inspections that medical and office equipment facilities were not yet installed, falsely reported to the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo that the facilities had been completed, thereby missing the opportunity to establish government-level corrective measures.

Accordingly, the Board of Audit and Inspection requested caution for the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and Jeonbuk Province for their poor handling of responsibilities and ordered disciplinary action against five public officials from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, Jeonbuk Province, and Jeonbuk Office of Education. For seven individuals, including former Minister of Gender Equality and Family Kim Hyun-sook and organizing committee secretary-general Choi Chang-haeng, a former Ministry of Gender Equality and Family official, records of misconduct were to be kept to prevent their reappointment as public officials. Six individuals suspected of crimes such as obstruction of official duties and bid rigging were referred to investigative agencies for prosecution.

The Board of Audit and Inspection stated, "The Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree incident was a case caused by overall poor handling of tasks," and added, "This audit was conducted to prevent similar cases from recurring in future international event hosting."

Yonhap News

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