In the Regional Innovation Project (RIS), in which regional universities and local governments work together to cultivate local talent and boost industrial competitiveness, 40 billion won was found to have been inappropriately spent over the past five years. Numerous irregularities were uncovered, including embezzlement of research funds, bid rigging, violations of contracting procedures, and use of project funds for purposes other than intended.
The Office for Government Policy Coordination said on the 4th that the Government Joint Corruption Prevention Task Force, together with the Ministry of Education, uncovered 940 improper cases worth 40.8 billion won in an inspection of the Local Government–University Cooperation-Based Regional Innovation Project (RIS).
The RIS project is a Ministry of Education financial support program for regional universities that ran for five years starting in 2020, aiming to cultivate local talent and enhance industrial competitiveness through cooperation among universities, local governments, and corporations. To date, 1.184 trillion won in national funds and 519.2 billion won in local funds have been invested. Starting this year, the government reorganized the project into the Regional Innovation-led University Support System (RISE), which integrates and expands the program, and this inspection was conducted during that transition.
◇ Rampant "moral hazard," including embezzlement of research funds… 339 cases of "backdoor contracts"
The inspection found 421 improper cases related to the execution of research funds, totaling 840 million won. Some researchers received "paybacks" through false claims for research expenses or used the budget for personal purchases, such as buying items unrelated to research.
One university professor paid the on-campus supply store under the pretext of research material costs and bought personal items such as an iPhone, a cordless vacuum, and a foot massager, while another professor used amounts paid at a local mart like reward points and exchanged them for household goods such as alcohol. Some corporations disguised existing products as newly developed, paid false material costs, and then got the money back, embezzling hundreds of millions of won.
In contract management, 339 violations were uncovered, totaling 38.1 billion won. Suspected cases of bid rigging (worth 4.7 billion won) were detected in which family-run businesses paired up to repeatedly participate in bids, and multiple cases were found of contracting below the bid price or waiving the penalty for delay in violation of procedures. In particular, there were 227 cases (worth 32.2 billion won) of splitting contracts to avoid competitive bidding.
A government official said, "We are recovering the amount improperly executed related to research funds, and seven cases with clear intent have been referred to investigative agencies," adding, "In contract management, three cases were referred to the Fair Trade Commission for investigation, and approximately 30 million won in violations was recovered."
◇ Not for project purposes… diverted to "university PR costs and souvenirs"
In budget management, 120 improper executions totaling 1.6 billion won were identified. Some universities made bulk purchases of unnecessary goods to use up remaining project funds at the end of the fiscal year, or spent money on library remodeling and LED signboard installations unrelated to RIS. There were also cases of purchasing souvenirs such as expensive golf ball sets and body wash.
Performance management checks also revealed 60 improper cases. Typical examples included resubmitting the final report from another research project as is, or submitting the same deliverable to multiple projects. Some reports were only three pages long, or recorded only the number of training sessions without any actual educational outcomes.
The government has recovered approximately 45 million won in the budget management institutional sector and plans to strengthen budget management authority centered on local governments rather than universities starting next year. It also plans to improve the management system by preventing duplicate benefits through the e-Naradoum system and tightening sanctions on insincere researchers.
An official at the Office for Government Policy Coordination said, "We will regularly check the implementation of corrective plans and take stern action against improper cases," adding, "We plan to enhance the effectiveness and accountability of university financial support programs by strengthening education to prevent recurrence."