The transition team of President-elect Park Geun-hye is expected to consider elevating the administrative status of the Small and Medium Business Administration, which oversees policy support for smaller businesses.

On Friday, the state-run agency offered its policy briefing to the transition team, emphasizing the necessity for it to be upgraded to a ministerial-level government office to carry out relevant policies more efficiently.

The agency, affiliated with the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, currently has no direct right to submit its own bills or allocate budgets. Last year, a budget worth more than 12 trillion won ($11 billion) went to the agency.

The Small Business Administration was one of the first government offices to give policy briefings on Friday, reflecting the incoming president’s strong will for “economic democratization,” which prioritizes shared growth between large and smaller companies.

As part of its efforts to abolish the so-called “three evils” ― unfair contracts, unfair systems and unfair competition ― the agency proposed toughening punishment for unfair business activities and legally categorizing business sectors more suitable for smaller firms.

During her election campaign, Park pledged to impose tougher punitive fines on companies involved in unfair transactions with their contractors, while tightening surveillance of the antitrust system.

Yoon Chang-jung, the transition team’s spokesperson, declined to comment on individual briefings, saying that the team is aimed at studying the incumbent government’s ongoing policies rather than making any specific policy decisions.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)