16 metropolitan and provincial offices of education rated ‘top tier’ for records management; 29 district offices ranked ‘bottom tier’

[Financial News] Of the 17 metropolitan and provincial offices of education nationwide, 16 received the highest rating in an assessment of public records management, while 29 front-line district education support offices received the lowest rating. Nearly 4 in 10 district offices failed to score 80 points.
The National Archives of Korea, under the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, released the ‘2026 Records Management Agency Evaluation Results’ at a Cabinet meeting on the 10th. The evaluation covered the previous year’s records-management performance at 230 agencies nationwide, including 17 metropolitan and provincial offices of education, 176 district education support offices and 37 government-affiliated public institutions.
The evaluation examined whether agencies had specialized personnel to manage records, stored and transferred documents produced in the course of their work according to established procedures, and lawfully disposed of records whose retention periods had expired. The metropolitan and provincial offices of education averaged 94.8 points.
Sixteen offices, including those in Seoul, Gyeonggi Province, Busan, Sejong and South Chungcheong Province, received Grade A, with scores of 90 or higher. Only the South Jeolla Office of Education was classified as Grade B, with a score of at least 80 but below 90. By contrast, district education support offices averaged 79.6 points, 15.2 points lower than the metropolitan and provincial offices of education.
District education support offices assist with school operations and educational administration in their respective regions. Of the 176 offices, 87 received Grade A and 21 received Grade B. Twenty-nine received Grade C, for scores of at least 70 but below 80, while 10 received Grade D, for scores of at least 60 but below 70. Another 29 received the lowest rating, Grade E, with scores below 60. In all, 68 offices—38.6% of the total—scored below 80.
South Jeolla had the most district education support offices in the lowest tier, with 11. They were the offices in Suncheon, Gwangyang, Goheung, Gurye, Sinan, Yeonggwang, Yeongam, Wando, Jangseong, Jangheung and Hwasun. Gyeonggi had nine: Uijeongbu, Paju, Icheon, Gapyeong, Guri-Namyangju, Anseong, Yangpyeong, Yeoju and Yeoncheon. Gangwon State had seven—Chuncheon, Taebaek, Hoengseong, Goseong, Inje, Jeongseon and Hwacheon—while Gyeongsangbuk-do had two, Seongju and Uljin.
Grade C included the offices in Goyang, Bucheon, Seongnam, Suwon and Hwaseong-Osan in Gyeonggi; Gangneung and Wonju in Gangwon; Pohang in Gyeongsangbuk-do; Naju and Mokpo in South Jeolla; and the Jeju City Office of Education Support. Grade D included Seoul’s Nambu and Seongbuk-Gangbuk offices; Gimpo and Dongducheon-Yangju in Gyeonggi; Gokseong and Yeosu in South Jeolla; and Taean in South Chungcheong Province.
Government-affiliated public institutions averaged 88.1 points. Twenty-one received Grade A, including the Bank of Korea, Korea Electric Power Corporation, Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) and National Pension Service (NPS). The Korea Aerospace Research Institute received Grade C, while the Korea Research Institute for Human Settlements and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) received Grade D. The 230 agencies averaged 87.5 points overall, up 3.4 points from the 2024 evaluation. The number of agencies in the lowest tier, Grade E, also fell from 46 to 29. Records management at public institutions improved overall, but some district education support offices continued to receive low ratings. The National Archives of Korea plans to send experts to agencies with poor results to review problems in their records-management work and advise them on improvements. Outstanding agencies will receive awards in the first half of next year.
Minister of the Interior and Safety Yun Ho-jung said, “It is encouraging that the overall level of records management has improved, but effective support is needed for agencies that are falling short.”

[email protected] Lee Bomi Reporter