Reasons for Proposal
While the service industry is a key industry that supports the Korean economy’s sustainable growth by expanding its domestic market and creating jobs at the same time, competitiveness and productivity in Korea’s service industry are lower than those in other advanced countries or Korea’s manufacturing industry. As such, this Act aims to prepare support policies to expand service industry R&D investment, which can consistently improve the service industry’s competitiveness and productivity, reinforce infrastructure in the service industry by promoting professional research and educational institutions, establish and operate the Service Industry Advancement Committee to review the government-wide Service Industry Development Master Plan and discuss related policies, foster the implementation system to develop the service industry, and thereby lay the institutional foundation that helps the service industry to develop as a driving force for the Korean economy.
Details
A. Establish and implement the Service Industry Development Master Plan and annual action plans and inspect their progress (Articles 5 to 7)
Require the government to establish the Service Industry Development Master Plan, which sets forth mid- and long-term goals and basic directions to develop the service industry, every 5 years upon review by the Service Industry Advancement Committee, the head of relevant central administrative agencies to establish and implement annual action plans, and the Service Industry Advancement Committee to inspect their progress
B. Establish and operate the Service Industry Advancement Committee (Articles 9 to 11)
Place the Service Industry Advancement Committee under the Ministry of Economy and Finance to review major policies and plans to develop the service industry, designate as co-chairs the Minister of Economy and Finance and a member appointed from the private sector, and allow the Committee to organize working committees to support its work
C. Promote service industry R&D and investment (Articles 14 and 15)
Allow the government to certify R&D outcomes and provide support required to promote the commercialization of R&D outcomes such as funding and tax breaks in an effort to newly establish the concept of service industry R&D, which reflects the service industry’s characteristics beyond the traditional manufacturing-oriented R&D, and attract more R&D investment
D. Promote the use of information and communications technologies and services in the service industry (Article 18)
Allow the government to establish and implement policies required to actively use information and communications technologies and services in the service industry and discover and support best practices
E. Prepare the basis for a support system required to develop the service industry (Articles 19 to 21)
Require the government to select key service industries to foster systematic support for service business startups and their overseas expansion, prepare the basis to support financial and human resources required for startups as well as tax breaks, and continue to discover and improve the system that currently puts the service industry at a disadvantage compared to the manufacturing industry
F. Designate educational institutions specialized in the service industry (Article 23)
Allow the government to establish and pursue policies required to train professionals in the service industry and designate and support institutions specialized in the service industry, groups, high schools, universities, and other educational institutions as educational institutions specialized in the service industry
G. Designate service industry professional research centers (Article 24)
Allow the Minister of Strategy and Finance to designate and support professional research centers, which conduct basic surveys, engage in research, and offer policy suggestions required to develop the service industry, upon review by the Service Industry Advancement Committee
