SEOUL: The world today knows much about South Koreans through their K-pop culture and the products of their corporate behemoths like Samsung, LG and Hyundai.
K-pop boy band like BTS, and singer and rapper PSY have etched their country’s name on the global stage. Samsung and LG have become household names with their electronic and electrical products. Hyundai-built automobiles, buildings, bridges and ships can be seen even in the far corners of the world.
South Koreans’ achievements today are the reflection of their mastery both in arts and science, something that came about dramatically after the country embraced greater democratisation and the digital economy since the 1990s.
” The new economic paradigm is also crucial in helping Malaysia move on from a middle-income economy to a high-income one. “
There is a lot that Malaysia can learn from South Korea in creating a creative and technology-savvy generation, and move up the ladder in the digital economy.
Sang-won Ko of the Korea Information Society Development Institute (Kisdi) told Bernama that the essence of the transformation witnessed by South Korea was the innovation in culture and education, something that even Malaysia could follow.
Ko is the head of the International Cooperation Division of Kisdi that contributes to growth and job creation through studies related to the research on securing the ICT ecosystem dynamics, creating new markets based on ICT, revitalising venture businesses, solving social problems through ICT, and responding to dysfunctions.
After the global financial crisis in 1998, it was no longer business as usual with South Korea taking the bold step to introduce economic reforms with the information technology (IT) sector, considered among the pillars in bolstering the nation’s economy.
“Koreans always want to go palli-palli (faster) and they are quick, nimble and flexible in adapting to the changes their country has been undergoing,” he said, adding that Koreans have grown in harmony with the digital economy.
“The private sector and consumers are the major driving force in Korea’s digital economy, with the government providing the infrastructure and encouragement in creating a knowledge-based society. Even schools in South Korea have leveraged on IT to boost learning, further helping to create a knowledge-based society,” said Ko.
” The private sector and consumers are the major driving force in Korea’s digital economy, with the government providing the infrastructure and encouragement in creating a knowledge-based society. “
The foundation for Korea’s digital economy goes back to 1995 when Korea Information Infrastructure (KII), the framework on information promotion, was established to advance the nation’s IT infrastructure.
Ko pointed out that one of the most-defining policies in promoting digital literacy among South Koreans was the implementation of the “Ten Million People Internet Education” project in 2000 that provided Internet education to 10 million people – whereby homemakers, the elderly, military personnel and farmers benefited from the project.
Hence, the outcome today is obvious. Koreans, especially the present generation, are tech-savvy. South Korea has the highest number of broadband users. Broadband penetration has reached 100 percent, leaving no space for growth.
Ko said countries like Malaysia too were well poised to take up the digital economy and unleash socio-economic transformation.
He said Kisdi, under South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT, established three decades ago, conducts research based on the demands of the government ministries and has exchanges with foreign counterparts including the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC).
However, for Korean economist Chung-Lyol Lee, the rise in tech-savvy South Koreans today is not only because of the digitalisation of the country’s economy but more because of the democratisation the country has been undergoing since the 1990s.
“In the 1980s and earlier, South Koreans were inclined towards the arts. However, democracy and the greater freedom enjoyed by South Koreans since the 1990s changed the Korean way of thinking. They did what they like to do; democracy had made them more innovative and creative,” said Lee.
He said Malaysia, like what South Korea did in the 1990s, has to look into a new economic paradigm like the digital economy adopted by South Korea to unleash social and economic transformation.
“The new economic paradigm is also crucial in helping Malaysia move on from a middle-income economy to a high-income one,” said the academician who is with Korea University’s Sejong Campus. – Bernama
