A view of the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency headquarters. [Korea SMEs and Startups Agency]
A view of the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency headquarters. [Korea SMEs and Startups Agency]

The Korea SMEs and Startups Agency has reviewed the progress of its anti-corruption and integrity initiatives and stepped up efforts to spread a culture of transparency.

The agency said Monday it held a meeting at its headquarters in Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, to assess the status of its anti-corruption and integrity policies, and presented awards at the "Transparent KOSME AI+ Short-Form Contest."

About 20 people attended the meeting, including agency President Kang Seok-jin and heads of key departments. Participants reviewed first-half results on anti-corruption and integrity policy implementation, shared department-level progress and best practices, and discussed plans for the second half of the year — exploring ways to build a culture of integrity that citizens can tangibly experience.

The agency discussed action items centered on five strategies: strengthening transparency in its core operations, building an integrity-driven work system, spreading a culture of integrity that employees can feel firsthand, realizing smart digital-based integrity administration, and creating an integrity environment centered on communication and empathy.

Particular emphasis was placed on preventing corruption risks across key projects in advance — including blocking improper third-party interference in the policy funding support process — and on building a fair policy support environment.

At the awards ceremony that followed, Kim Do-yoon's entry "Where It's Needed, Rightly So" — carrying the message that public funds should be spent correctly where they are truly needed — was selected as the top prize winner.

Public institutions have recently been actively incorporating AI-generated content into integrity and ethics education and outreach. There is a growing trend toward moving away from one-way instruction and instead conveying the value of integrity in an accessible and engaging way through public contests and short-form content that invite direct participation from citizens and employees. The agency plans to continue expanding participation-driven integrity initiatives and activities to enhance transparency in policy fund disbursement, building on the momentum of this contest.

"Integrity is the most fundamental value a public institution must uphold and the starting point of public trust," agency President Kang said. "We will continue to pursue anti-corruption and integrity policies with substance, and work to become an institution that earns even greater trust from the public by spreading a culture of integrity built on communication and empathy among our employees."


boo@heraldcorp.com