A sense of solemn determination filled the air while the South Korean president Park Chung-hee gave his speech at the reception.
It was the winter of 1964 and Mr Park was visiting West Germany at the invitation of the president Heinrich Lübke. As the leader of one of the poorest countries, Mr Park was looking to obtain loans to carry forward its first five-year economic development plan. Korean miners and nurses working in West Germany to earn foreign capital were gathered for a dinner ceremony.
Looking into the eyes of his people, Mr Park was overcome with emotion. Asking for their patience and perseverance, he promised to create a prosperous nation with "happy homes filled with bright smiles".
The Korean workers responded by offering their future wages as collateral for loans from West Germany. At that moment, a strong bond formed between the Korean president and the workers, igniting a desire to achieve economic development. Certainly, that was one of the most memorable moments in Korea's path to prosperity. Utilising such loans, foreign aid and cohesion among its people, Korea was able to fuel its determination for development.
"An economic miracle", "from rags to riches" and "the first-aid recipient turned donor" are some of the popular phrases that now describe South Korea. Such descriptions are quite a contrast from the phrases that depicted it only half a century ago, such as "the hellhole of foreign assistance", "a bottomless pit", and "a hopeless case".
Now ranked as the world's 15th-largest economy in terms of nominal GDP, Korea's rapid development has gathered attention from development specialists and policy practitioners the world over. It is often regarded as a textbook case for development as not many countries have achieved such dramatic growth coupled with political and social advancements.
During the past five decades, Korea's per capita income grew from US$82 (Dh301) in 1960 to $22,000 last year. In the same period, life expectancy rose from 52.4 years to 79.6 years. Democracy is now firmly rooted and functioning in place of its authoritarian past. Thus, the socio-economic achievements have often been described as a "miracle".
Both the market-friendly view, emphasising the primary role of the government in helping the market mechanism to flourish, and the development-state view, which claims prevalent market failures in the early years necessitated government intervention, offer plausible explanations on Korea's experience. Government intervention was extensive. Export promotion in the 1960s and the heavy-industry and chemicals-industry drive in the 1970s were based on severe financial repression.
The period up to the 1980s was characterised by high import barriers, restrictions on capital flows, widespread price controls and repressive labour practices. On the other hand, a relatively stable macroeconomic environment, well-established private property rights, and high public spending on education and infrastructure investment were market-friendly aspects of government policy often ignored by proponents of the development-state view.
Irma Adelman, an American development economist, has extracted six important lessons from Korea's case. She points to the importance of creating a "dynamic comparative advantage", including coordinated changes in various aspects of the society; tangible and intangible factors such as leadership, social capital and social resilience; the government role; the capability of the economy, society, institutions and policies to adapt to rapid change; and the input of global institutions.
Among them, the first and most important lesson Ms Adelman stresses is that Korea's experience is proof that "development is possible". Glistening buildings, vibrant traffic and a modern atmosphere now occupies Seoul, which was no more than a pile of ruins in the 1950s. In the 1960s, the Korean miners and nurses went to Germany to earn foreign currency.
Now Korea is a popular destination, receiving economic migrants from neighbouring states. An abundance of goods in local markets signifies the prosperous state of the economy. Korea's experience stands as proof that development is possible.
Aside from astonishing the world with its rapid and well balanced growth, Korea is assuming a growing role in international development. In attempts to share its experience with other countries, it is positioning itself as a bridge between developing and developed countries. Such efforts have made Korea a popular host for major international conferences.
It hosted the 2010 Group of 20 leading and emerging economies summit. Last November the fourth high-level forum on aid effectiveness took place in Busan, the second-largest city in Korea, and was attended by prominent figures such as the UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon, the US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, and Queen Rania of Jordan. As Ms Adelman states, the greatest asset Korea has to share is the hope for achieving prosperity.
Oh-Seok Hyun is the president of the Korea Development Institute
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
Company%20Profile
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Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
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Company%20Profile
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SPECS
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21 Lessons for the 21st Century
Yuval Noah Harari, Jonathan Cape
The Lowdown
Us
Director: Jordan Peele
Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseqph, Evan Alex and Elisabeth Moss
Rating: 4/5
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Race 3
Produced: Salman Khan Films and Tips Films
Director: Remo D’Souza
Cast: Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Bobby Deol, Daisy Shah, Saqib Salem
Rating: 2.5 stars
more from Janine di Giovanni
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
65
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirectors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EScott%20Beck%2C%20Bryan%20Woods%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAdam%20Driver%2C%20Ariana%20Greenblatt%2C%20Chloe%20Coleman%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
First Person
Richard Flanagan
Chatto & Windus
The specs
Engine: 5.0-litre V8
Power: 480hp at 7,250rpm
Torque: 566Nm at 4,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: L/100km
Price: Dh306,495
On sale: now
Mission%3A%20Impossible%20-%20Dead%20Reckoning%20Part%20One
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The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
Moving%20Out%202
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.