FINANCE
Which provides detailed data on official development assistance of Korea
Korea Eximbank publishes
“2013 ODA by Numbers”
The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Korea Eximbank) has published “2013 ODA by Numbers,” which provides detailed data regarding to the official development assistance(ODA) of Korea and member countries of the Development Assistance Committee(DAC). This is the second statistical publication detailing Korea’s ODA. The first edition was issued last year. “The enlarged new edition reflects people’s increased interest in official development assistance after Korea joined the DAC in 2010,” said a Korea Eximbank official.
The Development Assistance Committee, which is affiliated with the OECD
(Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development), discusses and coordinates
official development assistance for developing nations through policy dialogue among
member nations. Official development assistance refers to the flow of financial resources from the central and/or local governments of donor countries and multilateral agencies to developing countries. ODA is intended to promote the economic development and to improve the quality of life in developing countries.
Upon joining the Development Assistance Committee in 2010 as its 23rd member, Korea was recognized as an advanced country by the world. For the international aid communities, Korea’s admission was also significant since it was the first time that a recipient country became a significant donor country in a period of less than a half century.
The 2013 statistical publication provides detailed data regarding to “ODA by type, region and sector” from 1987 when Korea began to file data in regard to its ODA activity through 2011. The booklet shows that despite its persistent economic downtrend which was triggered by the global financial crisis, Korea’s ODA (in terms of amount of assistance delivered) in 2011 surged 12.8% in comparison to the prior year to US$1,325 million. As a result, Korea’s ranking rose by one notch to 17th among the 23 DAC member nations.
The 2013 statistical publication provides not only ODA by Korea but also aid by all DAC member nations. As such, it will help people get a broad picture of international aid trends, the Korea Eximbank official said .The publication also will be useful for formulation of Korea’s ODA policies, he added.
In October, 2010, the Korea Eximbank was designated as an agency responsible for collection of ODA data from the Committee for International Development Cooperation which is placed under the Office of Government Policy Coordination. The Bank gathers statistics regarding to ODA from a total of about 60 organizations, including the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Environment and KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency).
After joining the DAC in 2010, Korea has continuously improved its ODA system.
Furthermore, Korea has worked for global development by leading the adoption of the Development Agenda at the G20 Seoul Summit in November 2010 and successfully hosting the Busan HLF-4 in November 2011, serving as a bridge among developed, emerging and developing countries, and leading the launching of Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation.
Korea has remained committed to increasing its ODA volume. The commitment was echoed by the President at major international conferences including the UN General Assembly, the G20 Seoul Summit, and the Busan HLF-4. Plans call for a steady increase of the ODA/GNI ratio up to 0.25% by 2015, by which Korea can come close to the average level of DAC members. Of note, Korea’s ODA volume has increased in five consecutive years from US$455 million in 2006 to US$1,325 million in 2011, accomplishing the Korean government’s commitment to the international community in the midst of the global economic crisis. k