Only 1.7% of Officials Report Experiencing "Executive Hosting Day"... "Virtually Eradicated in Central Government"

The percentage of public officials who have experienced the so-called “Executive Hosting Day,” where subordinates take turns paying out of their own pockets to treat their superiors to a meal, has plummeted to just 1.7%.

Yoon Hojung, Minister of the Interior and Safety, is speaking at the plenary session of the "2026 Central-Local Policy Council." March 23, 2026. Photo by Cho Yongjun

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According to the results of the third survey on “Executive Hosting Day,” jointly conducted last month by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Personnel Management, only 1.7% of respondents said they had experienced this practice within the past month.

The survey targeted central and local government officials, using the “e-Saram” system for central government and the “Insarang” system for local government. A total of 181,688 officials participated (106,089 from central government and 75,599 from local government), marking the largest number of respondents to date.

The survey results show that the percentage of respondents who reported experiencing the practice fell from 18.1% in November 2024 to 11.1% in April last year, and now to 1.7% in this latest survey-a decrease of 16.4 percentage points compared to the first survey.

Breaking it down, the percentage for central government officials dropped from 10.1% to 7.7% and then to 0.4%, a decrease of 9.7 percentage points since the first survey. For local government officials, the percentage fell from 23.9% to 12.2% and then to 3.4%, a decline of 20.5 percentage points compared to the first survey.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Personnel Management have been regularly holding field meetings and countermeasure conferences to emphasize the need to eradicate such abnormal practices and have been spreading exemplary cases. As a result, both central and local governments have seen a significant decline in the practice, and the trend toward organizational improvement is spreading throughout the public sector.

The government plans to ensure that this trend is not temporary by continuing regular organizational culture assessments and consulting, aiming to completely root out unreasonable practices.

Choi Dongseok, Commissioner of the Ministry of Personnel Management, stated, “In the case of central government, thanks to the intensive efforts of each agency, ‘Executive Hosting Day’ has been virtually eradicated. We will continue to identify and pursue tasks to improve unreasonable aspects of public service culture and build a more vibrant civil service.”

Yoon Hojung, Minister of the Interior and Safety, said, “We will continue to correct abnormal practices that do not meet public expectations, thereby increasing trust in the public sector and achieving outcomes where the happiness of public officials translates into happiness for the people.”

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