The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has reported multiple incidents of workplace harassment at its overseas offices.
According to data released by Kim Dae-sik, a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, KOICA's workplace harassment investigation committee has recognized a total of seven cases of harassment from 2021 to this year, with six of these occurring at overseas offices.
One executive at KOICA's Africa regional office was found to have verbally abused an employee in February 2024, calling them "stupid" and "foolish." In December of the same year, this executive reportedly referred to another employee as "X-shin" in front of other staff members.
Although the executive denied the allegations during the investigation, the committee concluded that the verbal abuse had indeed occurred based on testimonies from witnesses. Following the investigation, KOICA issued a reprimand to the executive.
Kim attributed the recurring harassment issues to inadequate oversight of overseas offices and the excessive power concentrated in the hands of executives.
From 2022 to the present, KOICA has conducted comprehensive audits at only 12 out of 50 overseas offices across 49 countries, while nine offices underwent only written audits, and the remaining 29 did not receive any form of audit.
Moreover, the heads of overseas offices hold all authority over the hiring, evaluation, compensation, discipline, and dismissal of local staff, yet the hiring and management of local employees are excluded from KOICA's routine audits.
Kim stated, "KOICA is allowing a structure where the heads of overseas offices reign as unchecked local kings," and emphasized the need to hold the Ministry of Foreign Affairs accountable for its oversight responsibilities.
This is not the first instance of misconduct involving executives abusing their superior positions at KOICA's overseas offices. In a previous audit in 2021, it was revealed that an overseas office head had assigned personal errands to local staff and dispatched personnel, drawing criticism.
The closed working environment of overseas postings, where physical oversight from headquarters is challenging, is cited as a contributing factor to the recurrence of such misconduct.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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