"Old Framework" vs "Shaking the Safety Net"... Finance and Education Ministers Hold Public Forum at President Lee's Direction

Education Grant Reform Forum Held at Government Complex on July 8

The first public forum on reforming the Local Education Finance Grant (education grant) system, which has been maintained for over 50 years, was held. This forum was arranged at the suggestion of President Lee Jaemyung, as the gap between the fiscal authorities and the education authorities has proven difficult to bridge. While both ministers and experts generally agreed that the education grant system needs to be adjusted in response to the declining school-age population and changes in the educational environment, they expressed different views on the direction, methods, and speed of reform. Nonetheless, the fact that discussions, which had previously been confined to inter-ministerial consultations, have now been initiated in public is being regarded as an important starting point for the reform debate.

Hongkeun Park, Minister of Planning and Budget (left), and Kyojin Choi, Minister of Education, are conversing at the 'Discussion on the Reform of Local Education Finance Grants for Future Generations' held on the 8th at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

The Ministry of Planning and Budget and the Ministry of Education jointly held the forum “Opening New Channels for Education Finance: Discussion on Reforming Local Education Finance Grants for Future Generations” at the Government Seoul Office on July 8, 2026. Hongkeun Park, Minister of Planning and Budget, and Kyojin Choi, Minister of Education, as well as Keunsik Jung, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, fiscal and education experts, and representatives from the education field attended to discuss the necessity and direction of revising the education grant system. The forum was broadcast live through KTV, the Ministry of Planning and Budget’s YouTube channel, and the Ministry of Education’s YouTube channel, allowing for public participation and feedback.

The current education grant, introduced in 1972, automatically allocates 20.79% of domestic tax revenues to provincial and metropolitan offices of education. However, even as the school-age population has significantly declined, the total amount of education grants has continued to increase in line with tax revenue growth, raising concerns that the system does not sufficiently reflect new educational demands such as early childhood, secondary, and lifelong education. During the forum, while there was consensus on the need for reform, opinions differed regarding the solutions. Minister Park stated, “Our goal is to ensure the stability of education finance and promote balanced growth of education in Korea. We will seek answers through communication with the education community, based on reform principles such as a continued increase in the total grant amount and per-student grant, balanced investment across education areas including early childhood, secondary, and lifelong education, and reflecting changes in the school-age population.” Minister Choi remarked, “If the education grant system is revised without thorough review and communication with the field, the educational safety net and the future growth engine we have painstakingly built could be jeopardized. We will consider practical reform plans that can stably support diverse needs in schools while expanding investment in areas such as early childhood, secondary, and lifelong education.”

Experts also differed on priorities. Haksoo Kim, Senior Research Fellow at the Korea Development Institute (KDI), emphasized fiscal efficiency, stating, “The current method of calculating education finances should be restructured into a system that allows for rational and flexible resource allocation depending on policy environments and objectives.” Sunho Lee, Director of the Korea Educational Development Institute, argued, “The goals of the education system in an era of population decline should be clearly defined, and the system should be reformed to ensure sustainable education finance that supports corresponding educational needs.” Superintendent Jung and Hanseop Lee, policy chief of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union, said, “It is important to improve the quality of education, such as support for students with special needs and improving classroom conditions by securing a variety of teachers.” Based on the discussions at the forum, the government plans to continue consultations with the education sector and relevant ministries to develop a reform plan for the education grant system.

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