Busan is good

Busan Metropolitan City Sweeps Three Top Honors in Board of Audit and Inspection Evaluations, Demonstrating Excellence in Audit Capacity

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced today (December 19) that it has achieved a triple crown in various 2025 audit evaluations hosted by the Board of Audit and Inspection, earning nationwide recognition for both its internal audit capacity and its performance in proactive administration.

First, in the “2025 Internal Audit Activity Assessment” conducted by the Board of Audit and Inspection, Busan Metropolitan City was selected as the Best Institution and, for the first time ever, achieved the highest grade (Grade A).

The Internal Audit Activity Assessment evaluates the internal audit activities and internal control levels of central government agencies, local governments, and public institutions pursuant to the Act on Public Sector Audits, and assigns grades ranging from A to D.

Busan Metropolitan City received high marks across all evaluation criteria in the three assessment areas: institutional-level interest in and commitment to supporting internal audit organizations; performance of internal audit activities; and the organizational structure and staffing level of the internal audit body. In particular, the City demonstrated step-by-step improvement by advancing from Grade C in 2023 and Grade B in 2024 to achieving Grade A for the first time this year.

Through initiatives such as anti-corruption activities and the promotion of a culture of integrity, preventive audits focused on institutional improvement and problem-solving, the expansion of pre-consultation audits, and capacity-building for audit personnel, Busan Metropolitan City has continued to enhance the quality of its audit functions.

As a result of these efforts, Busan Metropolitan City was selected as the Best Institution within its category and was the only metropolitan-level local government to receive this distinction.

In addition, Busan Metropolitan City won the Grand Prize at the “2025 Pre-consultation Audit Contest,” which aims to promote and expand a culture of proactive administration within the public sector, for its case titled “Resolving the Buffer Greenbelt Occupancy Issue of LS Electric Co., Ltd.”

The City submitted the “Pre-consultation Audit on the Occupancy Permit for Buffer Greenbelt Land by LS Electric Co., Ltd.” as a representative best practice in regulatory reform for businesses, receiving high scores across all evaluation criteria and earning the Grand Prize.

LS Electric Co., Ltd. had faced difficulties due to conservative legal interpretations by permitting authorities when it required partial occupancy of a buffer greenbelt on the western side of its site for the expansion of its Busan plant. However, through Busan Metropolitan City’s pre-consultation audit, the buffer greenbelt occupancy issue was resolved, leading to additional investment worth approximately KRW 100 billion and the creation of more than 330 new jobs.

Finally, in the “2025 Internal Audit Case Contest,” Busan Metropolitan City’s “Performance Audit on the Management Status of Drive-through Facilities” ranked first among 17 metropolitan and provincial governments, earning the City its first-ever institutional commendation as an Excellent Institution.

The Internal Audit Case Contest is the Board of Audit and Inspection’s flagship annual competition, held annually to encourage the sharing of exemplary audit cases among internal audit organizations and to enhance the overall quality of audit activities.

In 2024, Busan Metropolitan City became the first in the nation to conduct a performance audit on the management of drive-through facilities. The audit drew significant attention as a case that induced substantive change by presenting new standards for traffic, safety, and institutional improvement.

Based on citizen surveys and analyses of overseas cases and regulations conducted last year, the City developed measures to improve pedestrian safety environments and alleviate traffic congestion. Notably, the audit findings were exceptionally published in an academic forum specializing in transportation studies, an uncommon occurrence for the results of a local government audit.

Meanwhile, Busan Metropolitan City established its annual audit plan earlier this year with citizen safety as its top priority and has pursued proactive and systematic audits aimed at building a safer Busan.

This year, the City conducted a range of audits closely related to citizens’ daily lives, including audits on the distribution of agricultural products with excessive pesticide residues at wholesale markets, special audits on reservoir construction projects and management practices, safety inspections on the management of mechanical parking facilities, and a special investigation into the sinkhole incident along the Sasang–Hadan Line.

Next year as well, Busan Metropolitan City plans to continue implementing effective audits that actively address citizen inconvenience and firmly establish safety.

Mayor Park Heong-joon stated, “Winning the triple crown in the Board of Audit and Inspection evaluations is a highly meaningful achievement that externally recognizes Busan Metropolitan City’s proactive efforts and tangible results in fostering a culture of integrity in public service,” adding, “Going forward, we will actively implement audit administration that citizens can trust and rely on by strengthening internal controls and expanding preventive audit activities.”