World Economy and Policy 2026, 2026(1):2

Comparative Welfare Governance under Digital Transformation: The Role of Digital Inclusion and Ageing in the Czech Republic and the Republic of Korea

Natálie Všetýčková
VSB – Technical University of Ostrava, Faculty of Economics, 17. listopadu 2172/15,
708 00 Ostrava-Poruba;

This article offers a comparative policy analysis of welfare governance in the Czech Republic and the Republic of Korea under conditions of demographic ageing and digital transformation. Rather than treating economic efficiency as a directly measured outcome, the article interprets it through a combination of three complementary indicators: social expenditure, digital e-government capacity, and human development. The analysis is based on a descriptive-comparative design using secondary data from the OECD, the United Nations, and the UNDP for the period 2013-2023, with EGDI observations available for 2014-2024. In this article, the generational dimension is approached primarily as a contextual issue of digital inclusion and administrative accessibility across age groups. The comparison suggests that the Republic of Korea combines lower but rising social expenditure with consistently high digital-government capacity, whereas the Czech Republic relies on a more redistributive and fiscally demanding welfare model while gradually improving its digital administration. Both countries achieve high human-development outcomes, but through different institutional configurations. The findings do not demonstrate a direct causal effect of digital governance on welfare efficiency; rather, they offer a structured comparative interpretation of how digital capacity, institutional coordination, and redistributive design interact in shaping welfare performance. The article contributes to the debate on how welfare states can adapt to digital transformation while maintaining social inclusion and administrative legitimacy.

Keywords: social policy; digital transformation; welfare governance; ageing; economic efficiency; comparative analysis; the Czech Republic; the Republic of Korea
JEL classification: H53, I30, I38, O33, O57

Published: August 25, 2026  Show citation

ACS AIP APA ASA Harvard Chicago Chicago Notes IEEE ISO690 MLA NLM Turabian Vancouver
Všetýčková, N. (2026). Comparative Welfare Governance under Digital Transformation: The Role of Digital Inclusion and Ageing in the Czech Republic and the Republic of Korea. World Economy and Policy, 2026(1), 2
Download citation
  • BibTeX (.bib)
  • Bookends (.ris)
  • EasyBib (.ris)
  • EndNote (.enw)
  • EndNote 8 (.xml)
  • ISI WoS (.isi)
  • Medlars (.medlars)
  • Mendeley (.ris)
  • MODS (.xml)
  • Papers (.ris)
  • RefWorks (.txt)
  • RefManager (.ris)
  • RIS (.ris)
  • MS Word (.xml)
  • Zotero (.ris)
    • Open full article

    References

    1. Chung, C.; Choi, H. and Cho, Y. Analysis of Digital Governance Transition in South Korea: Focusing on the Leadership of the President for Government Innovation. Online. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity. 2022, vol. 8, no. 1. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc8010002 Go to original source...
    2. ČESKÁ SPRÁVA SOCIÁLNÍHO ZABEZPEČENÍ (ČSSZ). Informace o působnosti ČSSZ. Online. 2026. Available at: https://www.cssz.cz/web/cz/informace-o-pusobnosti-cssz-snadne-a-prehledne [Accessed December 15, 2025].
    3. Gerven, M.V. Studying social policy in the digital age. Online. Social Policy in Changing European Societies. 2022, p. 251-264. Available at: https://doi.org/10.4337/9781802201710.00025 Go to original source...
    4. Hu, J.; Zhang, G.; Xie, F. and Li, Y. Digital inclusion, social participation and subjective well-being of rural middle-aged and older adults - Empirical analysis based on Chinese Social Survey data. Online. Acta Psychologica. 2025, vol. 261. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2025.105809 Go to original source...
    5. Kaczor, P. Sociální systém ČR. Praha: Oeconomica, 2022. ISBN 978-80-245-2443-6.
    6. Korea Legislation Research Institute. National Basic Living Security Act. Online. 2008. Available at: https://elaw.klri.re.kr/eng_service/lawView.do?hseq=7794⟨=ENG&utm_source=chatgpt.com [Accessed December 17, 2025].
    7. Lyulyov, O.; Pimonenko, T. and Kwilinski, A. Digital inclusion for a sustainable future: Catalysing green economic growth. Online. Sustainable Futures. 2025, vol. 10. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sftr.2025.101037 Go to original source...
    8. Ministry of Health and Welfare. About MOHW. Online. 2026. Available at: https://www.mohw.go.kr/eng/ [Accessed December 17, 2025].
    9. National Health Insurance Service. Guidance for foreigners. Online. 2025. Available at: https://www.nhis.or.kr/english/wbheaa02900m01.do. [Accessed December 17, 2025].
    10. OECD. Digital Government Strategies for Transforming Public Services in the Welfare Areas. Online. 2016. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1787/0d2eff45-en Go to original source...
    11. OECD. OECD Data Explorer. Online. (2013-2023). Available at: https://data-explorer.oecd.org/.
    12. OECD. OECD Reviews of Pension Systems: Czech Republic. Online. 2020. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1787/e6387738-en Go to original source...
    13. OECD. OECD Reviews of Pension Systems: Korea. Online. 2022. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1787/2f1643f9-en Go to original source...
    14. Ondrášek, S.; Kozlová, L.; Hricová, A. and Urban, D. Sociální politika. Praha: Grada, 2024. ISBN 978-80-271-5138-7.
    15. Rajpal, M.; Singh, B.; Chatterjee, S. and Sivarajah, U. Public sector development and entrepreneurial initiatives for improving circular economy performance: Government policy and digital transformation initiatives as moderators. Online. Technological Forecasting and Social Change. 2025, vol. 221. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2025.124333 Go to original source...
    16. Reis, J.; Santo, P.E. and Melao, N. Artificial Intelligence in Government Services: A Systematic Literature Review. Online. New Knowledge in Information Systems and Technologies. 2019, vol. 1, p. 241-252. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-16181-1_23 Go to original source...
    17. Sharma, L. and Garg, P.K. Technological prospects and social applications of society 5.0. Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2024. ISBN 978-1-032-34759-2.
    18. Tirado-Morueta, R.; Rodríguez-Martín, A.; Álvarez-Arregui, E.; Ortíz-Sobrino, M.Á. and Aguaded-Gómez, J.I. The digital inclusion of older people in Spain: technological support services for seniors as predictor. Online. Ageing and Society. 2023, vol. 43, no. 6, p. 1409-1435. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X21001173 Go to original source...
    19. Trofymenko, M.; Bulatova, O.; Trofymenko, A. and Vyshniakov, O. Digital Development and Technological Innovations: Inequality and Asymmetry. Online. Marketing and Management of Innovations. 2023, vol. 14, no. 3, p. 215-229. Available at: https://doi.org/10.21272/mmi.2023.3-19 Go to original source...
    20. UNDP. Human Development Index (HDI). Online. (2013-2023). Available at: https://hdr.undp.org/data-center/human-development-index#/indicies/HDI.
    21. United Nations. UN E-Government Knowledgebase. Online. (2014-2024). Available at: https://publicadministration.un.org/egovkb/en-us/Data/Compare-Countries.

    This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original publication is properly cited. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.


    Return to the content