S. Korea to sharply increase public disclosure of state databases

South Korea will sharply increase the disclosure of state-built databases, such as traffic and climate information, in an effort to help the private sector produce more valuable information, a state commission said Monday. The President's Council on Informatization Strategies reported to President Lee Myung-bak that it will disclose 27 times as much state information to the private sector in 2013, making public a total of 351 kinds of database in 2013 from the currently available 13 types. The council also reported that it will drastically shorten the time needed for the government to provide requested information to three hours from the current 15 days by 2016, according to a press statement. "Through information sharing between the government and the private sectors, we should be able to produce information more valuable to the government, companies and individuals," Lee said during the meeting, according to the statement. Lee also called for measures to safeguard personal information. The emergence of social media outlets and widespread mobile Internet usage has generated a flood of information, and the government will try to process and utilize such data for decision-making, the council said. Lee voiced concern that the trend could widen the information divide among people and instructed the council to try to narrow the gap and make as many people benefit from the data as possible, according to presidential spokesman Park Jeong-ha.