(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on Dec. 21)

Dollar-based GNI

As the year 2009 draws to an end, many are coming up with proposals regarding
what the nation should aim for in the New Year. Among those that have wide
currency is a campaign to develop Korea into an advanced country and foster a
nobler national character befitting its new stature.

An advanced country, a term often interchangeable with those of a developed
country and an industrialized country, is defined in different ways. In other
words, there is no all-inclusive single definition.
Still, Korea qualifies in all categories, ranging from high-income OECD members
and advanced economies listed by the International Monetary Fund to the World
Bank's high-income economies and countries at or above the U.N. Human Development
Index of 0.9. It is also included among the Economist Intelligence Unit's Quality
of Life Top 30.
But the problem is few Koreans regard their country as an advanced nation. At
best, they believe they are placed on the borderline separating advanced and
developing countries. As such, many propose to make 2010 the year in which Korea
joins the group of advanced countries.
Koreans have different ideas about what their nation needs to do to qualify as an
advanced country. Some call for the rule of law while others demand political
maturity. Still others claim Korea fails to provide an adequate amount of aid for
the least-developed countries.
But for most Koreans, the level of income determines the status of a country.
Four of every 10 respondents to a recent survey by the Federation of Korean
Industries agreed Korea needs to have $30,000 to $40,000 in per capita gross
national income to qualify as an advanced nation. Another three said $20,000 to
$30,000 would be enough.
The outcome of the poll explains why most Koreans do not regard themselves as an
advanced nation. Korea's per capita GNI, which peaked at $21,659 in 2007, has
fallen to around $17,000.
But per capita GNI is not as solid a criterion as it looks. Fluctuations in
exchange rates contribute greatly to determining the level of a country's per
capita income. The Korean currency-based per capita GNI has increased, albeit by
a small amount, from 21.2 million won last year to an estimate of 21.7 million
won this year. But the U.S. dollar-based per capita GNI has dropped sharply to
$17,100 - a consequence of the won having weakened so much against the dollar.
A consensus is widening among Korean economic think tanks that per capita GNI
will surpass the $20,000 level next year. The Samsung Economic Research
Institute, for instance, predicts it will reach $20,223 next year, assuming that
the annual average exchange rate stands at 1,130 won per dollar and the Korea
economy grows 3.9 percent in 2010.
An increase in income definitely has a great bearing on the wellbeing of the
Koreans as a nation. Korea needs to strive to boost per capita gross domestic
product to $30,000 and then to $40,000 in the years ahead if it is to provide
better life for all Koreans.
But debate on whether or not Korea is an advanced nation is of little
consequence, if not meaningless. Koreans, if they have any qualms about their
status as an advanced nation, may call themselves a developed country or an
industrialized country. By doing so, they may move onto more meaningful questions
regarding their status, such as what it needs to do to improve the quality of
life, or what it needs to do become a more responsible member of the
international community.
In other words, contribution to world peace, humanitarian assistance, the pursuit
of transparency, and law and order are now no less important for Koreans than
economic advancement.
(END)