The Korea Institute of Public Administration (KIPA) is a government-sponsored research institute

Research institute

A research institute is an establishment endowed for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research...

 in South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

, established in October 1991. They do research not just on current issues of public administration but historical ones as well, as in 2009 when a researcher presented a seminar paper about the effectiveness of public spending during the reign of Sejong the Great in the 15th century. In December 2009, new institute head Bak Yung-gyeok withdrew their labour research group from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions

Korean Confederation of Trade Unions

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions is a national trade union centre officially established in 1995. Its predecessor was the National Council of Trade Unions , established in 1990 as an independent alternative to the Federation of Korean Trade Unions. With 682,418 members in 2007, the KCTU...

 and dissolved it. In June 2010, they held a seminar on the Lee Myung-bak

Lee Myung-bak

Lee Myung-bak is the President of South Korea. Prior to his presidency, he was the CEO of Hyundai Engineering and Construction and the mayor of Seoul. He is married to Kim Yoon-ok and has three daughters and one son. His older brother is Lee Sang-deuk, a South Korean politician. He attends the...

administration's regulatory reforms.