S. Korea joins OECD's development aid committee

PARIS, Nov. 25 (Yonhap) -- An OECD committee for development aid on Wednesday
accepted South Korea as its 24th member, giving a boost to Seoul's "Global Korea"
campaign.
The Development Assistance Committee (DAC), a club of donor countries, endorsed
South Korea's application for entry into the group in a special meeting held at
the OECD's headquarters here, presided over by Eckhard Deutscher, chairman of the
DAC, according to the country's delegation to the session.
South Korea has now become a member of all 25 OECD committees, it added. South
Korea joined the OECD in 1996. The DAC is one of the organization's three largest
committees along with the Economic Policy Committee and the Trade Committee.
"South Korea's entry into the DAC reflects its will to provide aid to countries
in need under the international development system," said Oh Joon, deputy foreign
minister for international organizations, global issues and treaties.
South Korea will follow principles and guidelines set by the DAC in implementing
its Official Development Assistance (ODA) policy, he added.
DAC members especially noted a change in South Korea's status from an aid
recipient to benefactor, according to Oh.
South Korea, now one of the world's leading economies, rose from the ashes of the
1950-53 Korean War and achieved rapid economic and social development with the
help of the global development network.
South Korea's foreign ministry said in a press release that "The government will
push for a plan to increase the ratio of its ODA to gross national income to 0.25
percent by 2015 as scheduled." The ratio stood at 0.09 percent last year.
It added the country will also advance its aid system to meet the DAC's standards.
South Korea has staged the Global Korea campaign to play a bigger role on the
global stage.
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