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  • OECD DAC 평가기준 개정안 적용방안에 대한 연구
    Adapting the DAC Evaluation Criteria to the Context of South Korea

    Since first defined in 1991, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) evaluation criteria has been one of the most widely recognized and applied criteria for internati..

    Jisun Jeong and Aila Yoo Date 2022.12.30

    ODA, 대외원조
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    Since first defined in 1991, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) evaluation criteria has been one of the most widely recognized and applied criteria for international development evaluation. While the DAC evaluation criteria is believed to have significantly contributed to improving the quality of international development evaluations, there has been increasing criticism and demands to revise the criteria so that they can better respond to the rapidly changing development environment and the core values of the Global Agenda for 2030 and sustainable development goals. Following a wide-ranging consultation with various stakeholders and public survey, the OECD DAC published the revised evaluation criteria in late 2019. 

    One of the defining features of development cooperation in South Korea is a proliferation of government ministries and agencies newly engaging in aid with relatively limited expertise and experience in development evaluation. As the officers from the newly engaging ministries and agencies function as evaluation commissioner, manager and internal evaluator, it is crucial for them to have a clear understanding of the revised OECD DAC evaluation criteria. In this context, the study aims to analyze key changes in the revised OECD DAC evaluation criteria from the previous version and to help Korean evaluators and commissioners to understand the purpose, background and intended use of the revised criteria, and to adapt the criteria to their evaluation while reflecting the institutional context of South Korea’s development evaluation. The study highlights specific aspects under each criterion that Korean evaluators and commissioners should pay special attention to, making considerations for Korea’s aid management system, instruments and policy environment.

    For the relevance criterion, it was emphasized that in the context of South Korea, commissioners and evaluators need to pay particular attention to evaluate whether their selection of aid modalities and partner agency was appropriate. Another point stressed was that transparency and accountability in aid procurement processes should be evaluated within the relevance criterion. In times of multiple global crisis the DAC criteria encourage to assess the extent of adaptive planning and risk management. Nevertheless, the authors argue that the aid identification and budgetary process in South Korea does not allow for adaptive management. For the newly introduced coherence criterion, it was emphasized that each ministry and public agency need to assess whether their intervention is coherent with the interventions implemented by other Korean actors, not to mention external actors in the given country, region and sector. Synergies across different aid instruments and financial channels, e.g., grant and concessional loan, must be evaluated. For the effectiveness criterion, while the revised DAC criteria advise to consider inclusiveness and equity of results across different beneficiary groups, many Korean agencies lack the expertise and resources to take an inclusive approach in intervention design, implementation and results management. 

    The study provides the following policy recommendations to improve Korea’s aid evaluation system. Firstly, the Korean government needs to simplify the approval process and move away from the project-based annual budget allocation system towards sector, region and program-based multi-year budgeting. Currently, the Committee for International Development Cooperation (CIDC) of the Korean government requires all government ministries and agencies to identify development interventions two years before the project commences, and to approve the project design and budget one year before intervention starts. Budget is approved and allocated based on the project, involving a range of decision makers such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Prime Minister’s Office, the Budget office under the Ministry of Economic and Finance and the National Assembly. The complicated and lengthy project-based approval process is too restrictive to allow agencies and ministries to readjust their interventions when needs arise. The current system for project identification was originally introduced to allow sufficient time to ensure coherence between policy and programming and across agencies. But it now poses challenges to adjust the intervention to changing circumstances and unexpected events such as global pandemic, conflicts and climate-induced disasters. Secondly, the Korean government should create an enabling environment to plan, collect, monitor and track the disaggregated data for different beneficiary groups by providing guidelines and resources. Ministries and agencies need to plan ahead to monitor and evaluate differential results across various target groups. Lastly, evaluation should be planned and conducted in ways that facilitate the utilization of the findings to inform policy decisions, improve programming and strengthen institutional learning. The study concludes by arguing there should be more strategic evaluations to assess long-term, higher-level transformative impacts of Korea’s development co-operations. 

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  • 사회경제적 불평등 측정 방법 분석과 시사점
    Socioeconomic Inequality Measures and Implications

    With worsening inequality, the demand for inclusive policies has been continuously increasing. In particular, COVID-19 has highlighted the multidimensionality of inequality by exacerbating existing disparities while accentuating r..

    Gee Young Oh et al. Date 2022.12.30

    Economic development, 글로벌화
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    With worsening inequality, the demand for inclusive policies has been continuously increasing. In particular, COVID-19 has highlighted the multidimensionality of inequality by exacerbating existing disparities while accentuating relatively newer factors of inequality. As such, inequality measures have diversified, and a thorough understanding and appropriate use of measures has become a prerequisite to designing and implementing an inclusive policy.

    In this context, this report studies measures of economic, gender, and digital inequalities, dimensions that have been highlighted during the pandemic. The report compares the purpose, data, calculation methods, and strengths and weaknesses of each measure and illustrates how each measure depicts the current status of inequality. Out of various inequality measures, the report focuses on measures that are either commonly used in the international community or built for specific purposes. By doing so, the report provides useful basic information on inequality measures for policymakers or researchers for future utilizations. 

    To be more specific, Chapter 1 briefly examines the current inequality state, international community’s responses, and the impact of the pandemic. In particular, by overviewing the rising importance of economic, gender, and digital inequality due to COVID-19, Chapter 1 provides background explanations as to why Chapters 2-4 focus on measures of economic, gender, and digital inequality, respectively, and explain contributions of each chapter.

    Chapter 2 analyzes measures of economic inequality, particularly income inequality. Among numerous measures, those used as analysis tools by Korean government ministries and international organizations are selected. For example, measures based on the Lorenz curve, such as the Gini coefficient and the Hoover index, and those based on income shares, such as the Palma ratio and the quintile share ratios, are included. Also, measures focusing on welfare like the Atkinson index and newer measures like the Co-Prosperity index from the World Bank are selected for the analysis. The report lays out the basic information on the measures and compares strengths and weaknesses to show that measures are complementary to each other.

    Chapter 3 introduces indices that measure gender inequality and depicts levels of global gender inequality using each measure. Measures include the most widely used integrated indices, region-specific indices, subject-specific indices, and indices that measure factors of gender inequality. By introducing indices with various characteristics, Chapter 3 emphasizes the multidimensionality of inequality and enhances the understanding of gender inequality.

    Chapter 4 introduces indicators related to the use of digital and information and communication technologies that are frequently used to analyze digital inequality. In particular, various indices measuring differences across- and within- countries, including gaps between companies or classes, are introduced to enhance the understanding of the new dimension of inequality caused by a structural social change called digitalization.

    Finally, Chapter 5 compares the relationship among the three dimensions of inequality covered in each chapter across countries. The report finds that the correlation amongst the three dimensions is heterogeneous across countries, emphasizing the multidimensionality of inequality and the importance of understanding various measures of each dimension.

    Understanding how to measure inequality is crucial throughout a policy implementation process, from diagnosing the status quo to setting policy goals and evaluating policy performance. Accordingly, this report enhances understanding of economic, gender, and digital inequality measures by comparing the methodologies and using them to depict the current status of inequality. Inequality will further diversify with socio-economic structural changes such as climate change and trade wars. Therefore, it is necessary to respond to not only the existing inequality problems but also the problems that will arise in the future through continuous understanding and analysis of accurate measures of inequality dimensions.

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  • 인도의 농업 경쟁력과 한-인도 협력 방안
    India’s Competitiveness and Economic Cooperation between Korea and India in Agriculture

    India is one of the top five economies and the biggest agricultural producer in the world. Using the second largest arable land after the United States, India produces corn, cotton, peanuts, curry and spices, fresh fruit and veget..

    Soon-Cheul Lee et al. Date 2022.12.30

    Agricultural policy, Industrial policy
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    India is one of the top five economies and the biggest agricultural producer in the world. Using the second largest arable land after the United States, India produces corn, cotton, peanuts, curry and spices, fresh fruit and vegetables, and sugar as well as crops such as wheat, rice, and beans at scale. Recently, the Indian government’s active investment policies induce large investments in agriculture and thereby great potential for economic growth. At the same time, India has strict non-tariff measures and strengthens conformity assessment procedures in agriculture.

    Korea has the trade surplus with India in non-agriculture sectors, but the trade deficit in agriculture. Recently, Korea seizes a chance to enter into the Indian food market due to the global popularity of K-food. In addition, recent events such as global climate change and the war in Ukraine evoke the importance of food security and thereby the need for ensuring and diversifying a stable food supply. However, little is known about competitiveness, potential, limitations, and challenges for India’s agriculture because no research has dealt with them in Korea. 

    This study attempts to fill this gap by exploring competitiveness of India’s agriculture and providing policy implications for economic cooperation between Korea and India. In Sections 2 and 3, focusing on India’s domestic market competitiveness in agriculture, we adopted various quantitative methodologies to measure agricultural production, global presence, related policies, and competition level. In addition, considering the importance of productivity and efficiency for agricultural competitiveness, we measured them at firm level. Consequently, we presented opportunities and challenges for Korean exporters by providing a case study of overseas cooperation at firm level as well as performing the SWOT analysis for India’s agriculture. For this, we adopted the DEA analysis and interviewed local experts.

    In Sections 4 and 5, we focused on the level of international cooperation in India’s agriculture by analyzing the current trend of trade, overseas activities, and related policies and presented implications for Korean firms’ entering into India’s market. In Section 6, we examined protectionism in India’s agriculture by analyzing TBT and SPS which are main factors of non-tariff measures and suggested solutions.

    Accordingly, this study showed a vision for co-prosperity of Korea and India in agriculture and provided key challenges and strategies to realize it. In specific, we suggested practical tasks for economic cooperation in public and private sectors, respectively.

    Main findings of this study are as follows.

    In Section 2, we found that India’s competitiveness and opportunities in agricultural production are the world-class level. India has the second largest arable land after the United States and the largest number of rural population in large national territory and population. India is the third greatest producer after China and the United States in crops and the second greatest producer after China in vegetables, fruits, potatoes, and onions. India’s productions of livestock and dairy rank in the top 10 of the world. In specific, India produces garden products, livestock, and marine products as well as food and non-food products at large scale.

    The empirical results from the Porter’s Diamond model also showed that India’s market competitiveness in agriculture is the second highest in the world, The potential for India’s agriculture is enlarging with 1.4 billion including many young people, their future demand for processed foods, and improvements in supply chains, infrastructures, and global outsourcing. Recently, the Indian government actively adopts various policies for productivity, land management, price compensation for agricultural products, modernization of agriculture, reform for policy and governance, and construction of value chains and infrastructures. Accordingly, these policies are expected to develop India’s agriculture much more. 

    However, a portion of agriculture in the whole economy is decreasing and its investment is lower than other sectors despite such high potential for growth and competitiveness. We recognized that India still has many policy issues and challenges for driving agricultural growth.   

    In Section 3, we found that Indian agricultural firms leave room for improvement, but at the same time, have many opportunities for growth. The results from the financial analysis for Indian agricultural firms showed that both corporalization and exports are not enough for their aggregate scale. Efficiency of Indian agricultural firms is low in general: the crop industry are somewhat improved, while livestock, seed, and processed food industries are steady and forestry become worse. In general, the efficiency for technological progress is improved, but low levels of net efficiency and scale efficiency decrease aggregate productivity. The SWOT analysis showed that competitiveness of Indian agriculture comes from abundant law materials, abundant and inexpensive labor force, and massive market size, while its weakness comes from complex regulations, low quality, and low productivity. One encouraging fact is that recently K-wave induces the advancement of Korean confectionery and noodle industries in Indian market. 

    In Section 4, we reconfirmed that India has the world-class competitiveness in agricultural export. In particular, marine products, rice, spice, buffalo, and meat lead up the growth in export. The Indian government adopts overseas export bases, an export promotion forum, and a profile system for agricultural products to encourage exports. India encourages foreign investment, but offers the different degree of market openness and conditions by items. In particular, India has tighter constraints on retails of multi-brand products. India pursued international cooperation in agriculture through technological cooperation and FTA, and currently works together with FAO and WFP. However, India’s cooperation with Korea remains minimal. Accordingly, both countries require greater efforts to collaborate and thereby utilize great potentials in Indian agriculture.

    In Section 5, we found that India has strong protectionism with various non-tariff measures in agriculture. India adopts TBT and SPS to secure human health and safety, protect consumer right, and provide product information in agriculture. Recently, the issue for environmental production is on the rise, especially in processed food, dairy cream, beverage, fruit, and nuts. The theoretical and empirical results for the effects of TBT and SPS on international trade in India during the 1995-2020 period showed that India’s non-tariff measures negatively affect other countries’ exports to India and these effects are heterogeneous across exporting countries’ income level. By period, the negative effects persist for five years from first adoptions of non-tariff measures.

    In conclusion, we confirmed that Indian agriculture has high competitiveness and potentials in its production and market size and thereby expect that cooperation between Korea and India will yield great benefit to each other. In particular, India has sufficient production capacities to supply major crops and thereby Korean processed food companies can stably import necessary agricultural raw materials. We conclude that India is suitable for a major partner of food security for Korea. However, a weak spot for Indian agriculture is lacks of productivity, efficiency, and globalization. We assure that India will be a significant sourcing country in agriculture for Korea if these weaknesses can be improved. 

    For this, we suggested objectives, strategies, and policy implications for co-prosperity of Korea and India in agriculture. First of all, we set up the main objective of agricultural cooperation between Korea and India to be ‘Economic Cooperation of Co-prosperity to utilize Comparative Advantage of Agricultural Competitiveness’ and the major tasks to be ‘Improvements of Productivity and Efficiency’, ‘Reduction of Transaction Cost’, and ‘Activation of International Cooperation and Globalization’.

    To make India’s massive agricultural products be a sourcing hub, we selected necessary items for food security to Korea and for domestic and overseas market expansion to India. For these items, we included food, non-food crops, and livestock products under the objective of making a massive market hub. To realize it, we draw up detailed plans, focusing on overseas advancement of private sectors  to promote international trade and investments to India.

    We suggested directions and challenges for agricultural cooperation between Korea and India in the public sector, the private sector, and international cooperation, respectively. For the public sector, we suggested to (1) designate India a strategic cooperative country in agriculture and (2) operate a working force for agricultural development and cooperation between Korea and India. For the international cooperation, we suggested to (1) promote agricultural cooperation through a revision of the Korea-India CEPA, (2) collaborate with the ODA program to India, and (3) join various activities for international regulatory cooperation. Finally, for the private sector, we suggested to contrive a strategy for (1) promoting overseas advancement of private companies and (2) strengthening participation and capacity of the private sector.
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  • 한-MENA 녹색전환 협력 방안
    Korea-MENA Cooperation Strategy in Green Transformation

    In coping with the energy crisis caused by climate change and the Ukraine crisis, decarbonization policies have now become a global issue. Korea, which imports a large part of its energy, as well as major countries in the Middle E..

    서정민·서상현·김경하·노다솔·최이슬 Date 2022.12.30

    Economic cooperation, Energy industry
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    In coping with the energy crisis caused by climate change and the Ukraine crisis, decarbonization policies have now become a global issue. Korea, which imports a large part of its energy, as well as major countries in the Middle East and North Africa, which are resource exporters, are establishing long-term renewable energy green transformation strategies to prepare for future crises. The Ministry of Environment in Korea has established a green industry classification system and is preparing standards for various new and renewable energy industries. The government and companies are also striving to increase our competitiveness in various fields such as power infrastructure, electric vehicles, finance, and hydrogen industries.

     Major countries in the Middle East and North Africa are also pursuing long-term plans to intensively foster industries suitable for their conditions, such as wind power, solar power, and hydrogen, in order to transform into a decarbonized economy. The region has also adopted a green transformation strategy as a mid- to long-term growth strategy while responding to climate change. In this situation, this study attempted to examine why major Middle Eastern and North African countries, which have relied on traditional energy such as oil and natural gas, have recently conducted intensive investment in green industries such as hydrogen and solar power, and to find out how the region is seeking cooperation. Moreover, this study selected four countries in the Middle East and North Africa through a survey, and examined the current status and policies of the green transformation industry of the selected countries. Finally, the green conversion industry capabilities of the above four countries were analyzed, and based on this, cooperation strategies with Korean companies were derived through a survey.

    Chapter 2 examines the background and current status of Korea's green conversion policy. As a new national strategy in the post-corona era, the Korean New Deal was promoted, and the green transformation became an important factor. The ultimate goal is to achieve zero carbon emissions and accelerate the transition to a low-carbon, green economy. Chapter 2 also analyzed the status and policies of green transformation in major countries, focusing on the EU, the United States, and Japan. All of these developed countries are also aiming to cope with the climate change crisis and transform themselves into a sustainable society. Moreover, it can be seen that a large-scale investment program is being implemented to promote the green economic transition.

    Section 3 of Chapter 2 explains the current status of cooperation between the three major countries above, Korea, and four countries in the Middle East and North Africa. European countries, which are adjacent to the Middle East geographically, are the most active in cooperation with Middle East and North African countries. Major Middle Eastern and North African countries are emerging as key mutual partners, especially as important suppliers for European hydrogen demand.

    The Biden administration of the United States is also strengthening cooperation with countries in the Middle East and North Africa to cope with climate change. The United States invited the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Israel to discuss ways to cooperate at the 2021 U.S. climate summit. In the United States, private companies are particularly active in entering the green transformation industry in the Middle East and North Africa. Air Products, a U.S. industrial gas and chemical company, is actively cooperating with Saudi Arabia and Oman for hydrogen and ammonia production.

    Japan is also accelerating efforts to produce and transport hydrogen-free ammonia in Middle Eastern countries such as the UAE. Historically reliant on Middle East crude oil, Japan is working on a strategy to expand this relationship to green areas. Korea is also preparing various measures for cooperation with Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt at the government and corporate level, and the country that is most actively promoting cooperation is UAE.

    Chapter 3 analyzed the green conversion industries in four major countries in the Middle East and North Africa. First of all, we looked at the background and current status of new and renewable energy development in Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and UAE. The above four countries are also pursuing strategies to secure eco-friendly and sustainable industrial capabilities by breaking away from production and consumption patterns that relied on existing fossil fuels. Two North African countries, low or non-acid oil countries, are fostering inexpensive renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power as energy sources for future generations. Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the Middle East, which are rich in fossil fuel resources, are emerging as green hydrogen production sites using solar energy. The MENA area is rich in solar radiation and wind speed, presenting favorable conditions to secure competitiveness as one of the cheapest areas in the world for green hydrogen production.

    Chapter 3 also quantitatively analyzed the competitiveness of the green transformation industry in four countries in the Middle East and North Africa. The economic index utilized in this quantitative analysis was divided into the categories of growth, specialization, and potential, and the policy index was also analyzed by dividing it into legal systems and financial support. According to the analysis results, considering all aspects comprehensively, potential in the new and renewable energy industry is high in the order of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Morocco, and UAE. However, looking at the detailed index, it was found that there are strengths by region. First of all, Saudi Arabia and UAE, which are rich in domestic investment due to huge oil exports and imports, were evaluated to have a comparative advantage in economic index over Egypt and Morocco. On the other hand, Morocco and Egypt, which relatively lack domestic investment resources, seem to be actively attracting domestic and foreign investment by creating an institutional environment favorable to investment in the renewable energy industry.

    Chapter 4 analyzes surveys to select base countries in the Middle East and North Africa and to derive promising cooperation fields with statistics. To this end, a survey was conducted on experts in related fields at home. 100 survey answers were analyzed on a first-come, first-served basis. The survey adopted a analytical hierarchical process (AHP) method based on the relationship with Korea and the influence of trading partners. Considering diplomatic power, trade volume, private exchange, logistics infrastructure, location and stability, the market was subdivided. An analysis of the selection of candidates for bases using the AHP was conducted on domestic MENA and industry experts. According to the analysis results, the relationship with Korea has a weight about five times higher than that of the target country in the relationship between Korea and the influence of the target country. In other words, it can be seen that Korean MENA experts focus more on relations with Korea than on the influence of the target country. It also showed that diplomatic power weighed five times more than trade volume and private exchange, and that the logistics infrastructure was evaluated seven times more important than competitiveness, geopolitical, and political stability factors.

    In addition, based on 100 questionnaires, fields and products with high potential for cooperation with Korea were evaluated. The solar heat and light fields were evaluated as promising cooperation projects based on the geopolitical advantages of abundant sunlight and thermal energy in areas with high potential for cooperation with two North African countries. The area's most undervalued area is the bio sector. Promising eco-friendly energy products have emerged in the solar cell sector. Except for solar cells, secondary batteries, hydrogen cells, and ESSs showed normal scores in the 5-point range. In Saudi Arabia and the UAE, two Middle Eastern countries, solar and solar projects were also selected as the most promising areas of cooperation. It was investigated that products related to green transformation, which are promising to cooperate in the above two countries, are smart grids, solar cells, and ESS.

    Based on the examination of green transformation policies and environments in major Middle East and North Africa, the analysis of industry competitiveness of the major countries, and the extraction of possible fields and products of cooperation via survey questionnaires, this research has presented some suggestions which may contribute to mutual benefits towards MENA's industrial diversification efforts and our decarbonization strategy. The main suggestions are 1) forming a mid- to long-term dedicated TF in the Middle East and North Africa, 2) establishing a comprehensive win-win cooperation model with the countries, 3) seeking to advance together with advanced countries or companies, 4) expanding top-down approaches of summit diplomacy,  5) holding regular green transformation (reverse) roadshows, and 6) building networks and training professionals in the related fields.
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  • 아프리카 문화콘텐츠 산업의 발전과 한국에 주는 함의
    Creative Industry in Africa from the Perspective of Korea

    Cultural and creative products are not just containers of historical and cultural identities but commercial goods tradable across borders. Simultaneously, culture is one of the primary sources of so-called “soft power,” along wi..

    Yongkyu Chang et al. Date 2022.12.30

    Economic cooperation, Industrial policy
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    Cultural and creative products are not just containers of historical and cultural identities but commercial goods tradable across borders. Simultaneously, culture is one of the primary sources of so-called “soft power,” along with political values and legitimate national foreign policy. Hence, the Korean government has been taking a leading role in building up the cultural and creative industry since the 1990s. The “Hallyu,” or craze for Korean creative products outside Korea, has been expanding across the world, from the epicenter of Asia and North America to the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. While such expansion led to interest in the mediascape of varied regions around the world, Africa has remained in the margin of academic and policy research of the creative industry. This report aims to provide information and analysis of the less studied mediascape in Africa.

    Given the growing cultural engagement between Korea and the countries in Africa, this report examines the creative industry in Africa from three distinctive perspectives of development cooperation in creative industry, cultural public diplomacy and trade in cultural and creative goods. Drawing on field research and secondary research on production, retailing and consumer environment in the creative industry, this report provides lessons for further inter-continental cultural engagement.

    Africa is a continent with 55 nations. Acknowledging the diversity in mediascape in each country, this report narrows its focus down to three representative countries. First, Rwanda, located in East Africa, provides an exemplary case of the media being used as a powerful political tool. The destructive role of radio during the genocide in the 1990s has been cited in explaining the danger of the media. The tragic experience resulted in strong government intervention in the creative industry. Second, Nigeria in West Africa is leading the production of films, particularly in the informal economy, which is better known as Nollywood. In the relative absence of government intervention, producers and retailers in Nollywood have built Nollywood into the world’s second largest movie producer in terms of the number of films produced. Third, South Africa reveals rather different roles of the creative industry in relation to most sub-Saharan African countries. Its creative industry is well integrated in the global value chain, and the South African government offers incentives to make its local creative industry more attractive to international producers and retailers. This policy direction is in tandem with reconciliation and development of the historically less-privileged by the post-apartheid government.

    Drawing on analysis of the three countries, the report suggests as follows. First, Rwanda provides the potential of development cooperation in creative industry. The size of the formal economy in the creative industry is, like that of most African countries, too insignificant to attract stakeholders in Korea’s creative industry. However, an increasing number of African countries, including Rwanda, Tanzania, and Ghana, are recognizing the role of the creative industry in economic growth. These countries lack institutional experiences to build up the industry. Therefore, such countries will become effective destinations of Korea’s development cooperation in the creative industry, focusing on capacity-building through the sharing of Korea’s knowledge and experience. Cities are better equipped in providing hands-on experience in the creative industry. Here, the government agency in charge of development cooperation (KOICA) can take the role of a pilot agency. Upon the request of partner countries, KOICA can initiate partnering the countries in Africa and cities in Korea which have relevant experiences in varied sectors in the creative industry.

    On the other hand, our research in Nigeria and South Africa offers lessons in light of public-private cooperation and private sector engagement. Nigeria reveals opportunities for public-backed private sector engagement. The government’s trade agency (KOTRA) can take a leading role in understanding Africa’s active-yet-unregulated market and provide private stakeholders with pertinent consultations. For instance, Nigeria is the largest economy in Africa with a massive pool of potential consumers for varied creative goods. Additionally, its film industry is distinctively commercial-oriented. Lastly, South Africa offers significant opportunities for stakeholders in the creative industry as a gateway country to Africa. Its creative industry is well integrated with the global value chain and its broadcasting companies and telecommunications companies are operating across Africa. Its infrastructure is relatively well-established and government regulations are in place to support international producers and retailers.

    In conclusion, existing studies on Africa’s creative industry remain mere translation of studies carried out by Western researchers. This report contributes to widening the territory of our understanding of the African mediascape from Korea’s own reference point. While this report limits its scope to three representative countries, further research is necessary to understand the mediascape of Africa better.
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  • 아세안 지역의 저탄소 에너지기반 구축을 위한 한-아세안 협력 방향
    A study on the direction of cooperation between Korea and ASEAN to establish a low-carbon energy system in the ASEAN region

    As energy transition to respond to the global climate crisis has emerged as an important issue not only in developed countries but also in developing countries, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region is also exp..

    Hyun Jae Kim et al. Date 2022.12.30

    Energy industry, Environmental policy
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    As energy transition to respond to the global climate crisis has emerged as an important issue not only in developed countries but also in developing countries, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region is also expanding their efforts to build an energy system centered on low-carbon energy. The ASEAN is facing various challenges in pursuing such energy transition while responding to increasing energy demand arising from rapid economic growth and rising population. In addition, most ASEAN countries currently rely on fossil fuels such as coal and gas for 80-90% of their energy supply, urgently demanding ground-breaking but realistic alternatives for low-carbon energy transition. Therefore, the objective of this study is to identify the potential for establishing a low-carbon energy infrastructure in the ASEAN region by analyzing the current status of the region’s energy sector, greenhouse gas emission trends, and the member countries’ low-carbon policy goals, and to explore the direction of cooperation in the low-carbon energy sector between the ASEAN and Republic of Korea with focus on areas where cooperation with Korea can be further expanded.

    In the ASEAN region, as of 2020, fossil fuels account for about 83% of primary energy consumption and play a pivotal role in the energy consumption structure. In the power generation sector, despite the dramatic increase in installed solar power generation capacity from 1MW to 22.9GW during the period of 2005-2020, as of 2020, fossil fuels (coal 33%, natural gas 30%, and oil 5%) still account for more than 60% of the region’s power generation capacity. Moreover, slow investments due to high costs of clean energy projects, low reduction targets, limited readiness to accept low-carbon technologies, weak policies and regulatory frameworks, and lack of flexibility in power systems are obstacles to establishing a low-carbon energy infrastructure in the ASEAN region. However, all nine ASEAN members except the Philippines have declared to reach carbon neutrality, and most ASEAN countries are strengthening their policies to achieve each of their greenhouse gas emission reduction targets through expansion of renewable energy, energy efficiency improvement, decarbonization of transportation sector, increase of electric vehicles, and decarbonization of industrial sector. In addition, through the ASEAN Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation (APAEC), the region is conducting seven multilateral cooperation projects to build a low-carbon energy infrastructure including ASEAN power grid project, and continuously carrying out bilateral cooperative activities in joint projects, technology development, human and policy capability building, and financing in low-carbon energy area with major countries including Korea, Japan, China, the US, Germany and Denmark.

    Considering Korea’s experience in entering the ASEAN in related areas, and the low-carbon energy implementation plans and measures of ASEAN countries, this study suggests the following six areas as promising ones for low-carbon energy cooperation between the ASEAN and Korea: ① solar power, ② energy storage system, ③ clean cook stove, ④ wind power, ⑤ biomass and ⑥ hydrogen. For solar power, where the most active investments are made in both Korea and the ASEAN, various business models can be considered for all ASEAN countries from utility-level large-scale solar power generation complex to floating solar model, agricultural solar model and hybrid model with energy storage system. Energy storage system connected to renewable energy can be built in inland areas or on islands where power price is high and power supply is not reliable. For clean cook stove, a business model suitable for local circumstances needs to be developed for those ASEAN nations which have been heavily using traditional biomass fuels by utilizing Official Development Assistance (ODA), support funds for developing countries, and funds from international organizations and banks. In case of wind power, since the ASEAN region is not rich in wind resources because wind speed is slow in many areas and Korea’s domestic wind turbine manufacturing technology and cost competitiveness are somewhat lagging behind overseas countries, pursuing joint small-scale projects with companies or countries in and outside of the region which have sufficient technology capabilities and experiences in wind sector is recommended. Biomass energy needs to be considered from the perspective of forming a stable supply chain of wood pallets rather than entering markets. Lastly, hydrogen seems to have high cooperation potential in production in the region and in domestic trade sector for green hydrogen based on renewable energy as well as blue hydrogen combined with natural gas and carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology.

    In addition, this study analyzes the long-term ripple effect of connecting ASEAN-Korea carbon markets through a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model. The analysis shows stronger positive effects are created in many economic indicators when Korea and major ASEAN countries cooperate jointly by connecting carbon markets rather than independently implementing their NDC. At the COP26 held in November 2021, major negotiations between the Parties to utilize international carbon market mechanism were completed, so it is expected that individual countries’ efforts to achieve their reduction goals using the international carbon market will become active in the coming years. Therefore, preemptive efforts to expand cooperative relations in carbon markets with major trading partners such as the ASEAN should be strengthened.

    Finally, in order to strengthen implementation to expand cooperation in ASEAN-Korea low-carbon energy sector, it is required to ① craft more sophisticated and specific policies and strategies for ASEAN energy cooperation; ② expand and strengthen financing support for the ASEAN and bilateral cooperation channels; ③ rebuild cooperation system to promote cooperation in the low-carbon energy sector with the ASEAN countries; and ④ consolidate efforts to expand and discover ASEAN-Korea cooperation projects by leveraging multilateral energy cooperation initiatives in which ASEAN countries participate including ASEAN+3, East Asia Summit (EAS) and Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF).
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  • Regulatory Similarity Between APEC Members and its Impact on Trade
    Regulatory Similarity Between APEC Members and its Impact on Trade

    This paper examines the regulatory similarity between APEC economies by NTM types and sectors. We calculate the regulatory distance proposed by Cadot et al. (2015) and identify which industries or NTM type needs further cooperatio..

    Bo-Young Choi and Inae Heo Date 2022.12.16

    Barrier to trade, Free trade
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    Executive Summary

    I. Introduction

    II. The SPS and TBT Chapter of CPTPP and RCEP
    III. Trade Barriers in APEC

    IV. Data and Methodology
    4.1. Data
    4.2. Regulatory Distance of APEC members
    V. Main Results
    5.1. Country-level analysis
    5.2. By-sector analysis
    5.3. Further analysis: by technology level
    5.4. Further analysis: by product differentiation
    VI. Policy Implications and Conclusion

    References

    Appendix
    Summary
    This paper examines the regulatory similarity between APEC economies by NTM types and sectors. We calculate the regulatory distance proposed by Cadot et al. (2015) and identify which industries or NTM type needs further cooperation through the Free Trade Area of Asia-Pacific (FTAAP). We refer to the two pathways of FTAAP, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and analyze how FTAAP may incorporate the existing mega FTAs to reduce regulatory disparities among APEC economies. We find that regulatory distance differs across industries and thus focusing on specific industries like CPTPP may be an effective way to mitigate unnecessary trade costs attributed to the heterogeneity of regulations. We also argue that including provisions related to technical assistance and capacity building is essential as regulatory distance is especially big between developed economies and developing economies.
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  • Are Taxes Drivers of House Prices? : Cross-Country Evidence from (Advanced) Eco..
    Are Taxes Drivers of House Prices? : Cross-Country Evidence from (Advanced) Economies in APEC

    This paper investigates the determinants of house prices in APEC countries. We focus our analysis on the role of property related taxes as well as other important macroeconomic variables. Tax is one of direct tools of government f..

    Yeo Joon Yoon and Woong Lee Date 2022.12.16

    APEC, 조세
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    Summary
    This paper investigates the determinants of house prices in APEC countries. We focus our analysis on the role of property related taxes as well as other important macroeconomic variables. Tax is one of direct tools of government for influencing housing market. Therefore, analyzing how these taxes affect house prices provides direct policy implications. Our result suggests that the property tax is negatively associated, while the acquisition tax is positively related with the house prices. In shaping this outcome, the force from demand side as well as that from supply side are working at the same time. A higher tax usually increases costs of acquiring and maintaining houses which exerts upward pressures on house prices. On the other hand, a higher tax suppresses demand for houses because less people purchase houses as the costs increase. These two opposing forces interact with each other to yield qualitatively different results regarding the acquisition and property tax.

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  • 공공기관 ESG 현황과 경영전략: 해외사례를 중심으로
    A Study on the ESG Management of State-Owned Enterprises: Focused on Foreign Cases

    ESG management, which started from the perspective of investment by financial institutions such as pension funds, has become a management trend for global companies by pressing target companies for sustainable management. Recently..

    Tae Ho Lee et al. Date 2022.11.21

    Regulatory reform, Business management
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    Summary
    ESG management, which started from the perspective of investment by financial institutions such as pension funds, has become a management trend for global companies by pressing target companies for sustainable management. Recently, ESG management has been spread not only to private companies but also to public institutions, which is reflected in Korea’s performance evaluation of public institutions.

    Public institutions are in a suitable position to lead a change in the private sector by setting an example in ESG management because their establishing purpose is for public interests and the community building. However, Korean state-owned enterprises and quasi-governmental organizations have not established proper ESG management strategies yet.

    The public sector has different characteristics from private companies in three areas of ESG: E (environment), S (social), and G (governance). First of all, public companies have similar characteristics in G as private companies, so they pursue the interests of shareholders, but on the other hand, they must simultaneously pursue the policy goals, too. Public institutions other than public companies are different from public companies in G. 

    In the case of the social (S) sector, the public sector should pursue social values more than private companies. This is because public institutions themselves were established to increase social value or social utility.

    In the case of the environmental (E) sector, The public sector should lead the private sector in achieving national carbon reduction targets, using renewable energy, reducing sediments and wastes, and realizing a circular environment because they are public.

    In the end, the core of the ESG management strategy of public institutions can be said to be a leading role in establishing a governance structure suitable for the public sector, promoting social values, and coping with climate change.

    However, there are not many preceding studies on how the public sector should practice ESG management. Therefore, to establish the ESG strategy of the Korean public sector, it may be beneficial to identify cases of public institutions in major advanced countries around the world that are already building performance and establishing systems ahead of Korea.

    There are different kinds of interesting cases of ESG management by public institutions. First of all, France has traditionally accumulated know-how in public sector management of public institutions. The UK public institutions are an important subject of research due to the abundance of cases of privatization. Sweden has a strong public sector due to the social democratic tradition of Northern Europe. German cases are also interesting because of their stakeholder governance, involving stakeholders such as workers in the corporate supervisory board.

    The U.S. is a leading country of shareholder capitalism centered on the capital market, and the role of the public sector is not large. However, its public sectors such as Fannie Mae (housing finance) and Amtrak (railroad) are also exemplars. In addition, Japanese public institutions are of interest because they have a similar corporate culture to Korea. 

    Regarding ESG management of public institutions, international organizations present some guidelines. Representatively, the OECD announced guidelines for multinational enterprises, governance guidelines for state-owned enterprises, and anti-corruption guidelines for state-owned enterprises, It is no exaggeration to say that these three are OECD ESG guidelines.

    The UN’s Global Compact, Principles of Responsible Investment (PRI), SDGs, and principles for human rights and business (UNGPs) are important guidelines that Korean public institutions should follow.

    In addition, initiatives related to ESG information disclosure also affect the management of public institutions. Public institutions need to understand and apply various initiatives, such as the Sustainable Accounting Standards Board (SASB), the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), the Carbon Information Disclosure Project (CDP), and the Climate-Related Financial Information Disclosure Task Force (TCFD), and the GRI.

    In this study, the following implications were derived as a result of studying the policies and ESG status of public institutions in the EU, France, Sweden, Germany, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

    First, in terms of the management type of public institutions, it was found that major countries around the world are converging into a centralized management system. This is the recommended method by the OECD’s governance guidelines for public enterprises, and countries with decentralized or dual management systems are also shifting to centralized management systems.

    Second, the governance structure of public institutions is bound to be more stakeholder-centered than that of private companies, and public institutions in major countries were implementing stakeholder-centered ESG management.

    Third, The pursuit of social values of public institutions is more powerful and is being promoted through ESG. This is because the purpose of the establishment itself is for the benefit of the community.

    Fourth, public institutions were leading the private sector in environmental management. Setting and implementing environmental goals such as NetZero RE100, and SBTi requires considerable cost and sacrifice, where public institutions show examples for the private sector. 

    Fifth, public institutions in major countries’ESG management target are 17 SDGs, Global Compact, Principles of Responsible Investment (PRI), and Human Rights and Business Principles (UNGPs).

    Sixth, as guidelines for achieving these goals, public institutions adopted and followed OECD guidelines for multinational enterprises, governance guidelines for state-owned enterprises, and guidelines for anti-corruption and integrity. In particular, Germany has made 20 principles of the Sustainability Code and 20 checklists by creatively synthesizing these guidelines.

    Seventh, in the environmental field, most state-owned companies around the world aim to achieve carbon neutrality before 2050. In addition, as a means of achieving it, it has joined RE100 and has joined SBTi, which scientifically verifies its methodology. In addition, most of them had ISO 14001, an environmental management certification, and 50001, an energy management certification.

    Eight, in terms of governance structure, most public institutions had a board-centered management system. The board of directors could appoint and dismiss the head of the agency with independence. The chairman of the board of directors and the head of the institution were separated, the proportion of directors of women or minorities was set, and the proportion of independent non-executive outside directors should exceed half.

    Ninth, in the case of Germany, France, and Sweden, which have relatively strong socialist tendencies in the pursuit of social values, the strong momentum of social value was confirmed, but in the case of the United Kingdom, the United States, and Japan, the momentum of social value was relatively low.

    Tenth, in connection with the appointment of heads or directors of public institutions, most countries established a tradition of excluding politicians. In the case of the United Kingdom, the Commissioner for Public Appointments monitors, regulates, and discloses the appointment of executives of various public institutions, and the main role is to block personal influence and personnel intervention. The French Public Enterprise Management Agency (APE) integrates and manages the appointment of executives, management contracts of the head of the agency, management performance evaluation, and disclosure of management information including financial information.

    Eleventh. a significant portion of public institutions in major countries prepare and disclose sustainability reports through the GRI reporting methods. Public companies in each country include sustainability in their annual reports or publish sustainability reports separately.

    Finally, as the above analysis was applied to Korean public institutions, we know that ESG management of Korean public institutions is still in the introduction stage and is at a standstill. In particular, only a few public institutions have declared Net Zero in the environmental field or participated in RE100 and SBTi. Of the 63 domestic RE100 declaration companies, 13 are public institutions. The Korea Agricultural and Marine Products Distribution Corporation is the only public company that has joined SBTi, a scientific methodology for Net Zero.

    However, since 2018, the social aspect of ESG management in Korean public institutions has been improved but ESG management across employees, consumers, supply chains, and social contributions is still not organized. 

    The Achilles heel of ESG management, a Korean public institution, is the governance structure. Above all, the management of public institutions is still centered on the head of the institution, not the board of directors. However, it has become fixed that the head of a public institution is not appointed mainly based on competence or expertise, but is appointed as compensation for its contribution to the election campaign.

    To overcome this situation, the management goals and missions of public institutions should be redefined. The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be used as an important criterion. The 17 SDGs objectives can be mapped accurately to ESG. Among the 17 goals, selecting goals suitable for their establishment purpose and applying them to management is the way public institutions in advanced countries implement ESG management.

    After selecting goals, detailed action plans should be created according to global guidelines for each field of governance, environment, and society. The first thing to be improved in terms of governance, which is a weak point in the Korean public sector, is the ownership management system in the external governance structure. The Public Institution Steering Committee, which can be said to be an external governance organization of public institutions in Korea, is established as an institution under the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, so its independence is not guaranteed. It seems a desirable plan to reorganize it into an independent ownership management organization like the French Public Enterprise Management Agency (APE).

    Regarding the external governance structure, the issue of securing transparency and expertise in the appointment of heads of public institutions is also an urgent task to be solved. One of the chronic problems related to the selection of heads of institutions in Korea is the issue of appointment and replacement of heads of institutions linked to regime change. The OECD Anti-Corruption Guidelines recommend banning the appointment of political figures without the expertise to the public institutions.

    Next is the improvement of internal governance. it is important to secure management transparency to prevent a head of the institution from pursuing private interests and lax management. To this end, it is essential to secure an internal control system by enhancing the role of the board of directors.

    Regarding the improvement of internal governance, the OECD guidelines stress that the board of directors should be able to determine practical management strategies in the management of public corporations and to monitor and check management strategies. 

    However, in the case of Korea, there is a clear tendency to focus all authority and responsibility on the head of the public institutions. 

    Korea should now improve the internal governance structure of public institutions, which means centering on the board of directors. The OECD guidelines for determining the independence and autonomy of the board of directors has three criteria: whether the chairman of the board of directors is separated, the proportion of non-executive directors within the board of directors, and the right to appoint and dismiss the head of the institutions. The president of Korea directly appoints the heads of large institutions and public enterprises, and the heads of quasi-governmental institutions are appointed by the minister. The authority of the board of directors is very weak in that the government holds the right to appoint the head of the institutions.

    Currently, the appointment and dismissal of directors for the formation of the board of directors of public institutions are made separately by the minister regardless of the characteristics or size of the institution. It is necessary to clearly define the qualifications and requirements for the appointment of directors. Auditor has the same situation. 

    Another thing the OECD emphasizes concerning the role of the board of directors of public institutions is the risk management ability. The OECD stresses that the role of non-executive directors who do not directly participate in management activities but have accumulated various experiences in each field is very important for crisis management. In Korea, the board of directors of public institutions lacks not only expertise but also diversity, so improvement is urgent.

    In addition, the minutes of the board of directors meeting should be transparently disclosed. In addition, the term of office must be guaranteed with sufficient authority to the board of directors, and the activities of the board of directors must be strictly evaluated. In addition, it should be possible to give sufficient authority to non-executive directors.

    The OECD also emphasizes transparency in board activities, and Korea is required to disclose matters related to the management of public institutions through www.alio.go.kr. Basic information related to the operation of the board of directors is being disclosed on the site, but it is pointed out that there are still many things to be improved.

    Most of the public institutions in major countries are leading the NetZero under the Paris Agreement. Most are aiming to achieve NetZero by 2050, with some disclosing their goal of achieving NetZero earlier than 2050. In addition to responding to climate change, public institutions are taking the lead in implementing a circular environment system that respects biodiversity and uses resources in circulation.

    Korea’s public institutions shouldl not only declare 2050 carbon neutrality but also have to present their goals to SBTi and certify their methodologies. In addition, it is necessary to reduce water use and discharge of attractive substances, increase the use of renewable energy, recyclables, and eco-friendly products, and transparently disclose related information.

    The way public institutions in each country implement social values is very diverse. In the case of the UK, social value laws are simply intended to consider social value in public service procurement, but Swedish public companies are pursuing social value broadly based on the concept of community building.

    It is the OECD guidelines for multinational enterprises that well define ESG activities in the social sector. This covers the United Nations’ human rights and business guidelines. These values of the social part have already been well introduced in the social value part of the performance evaluation of public institutions in Korea, and have been strengthened since 2018. However, it is still pointed out that the indicators of diversity and inclusion are insufficient.

    For public institutions to effectively manage ESG in the future, it is necessary to reorganize the current public institution performance evaluation system centered on ESG. A policy was recently announced to reduce the social value sector, which has been increased significantly in the Moon Jae Inn government, and to increase the score of the financial sector. As the regime changed, the direction of ESG management in public institutions changed.

    This change due to the political perspective of the government makes public institution difficult to manage ESG. The organization of the institution was changed according to the performance evaluation result and manpower was reassigned, but it was in a situation where it had to be repaired at once. In addition, the consistency of the evaluation was undermined, and it was difficult to use the results of the performance evaluation for future management.

    One idealistic alternative is to use an internationally reliable sustainable report format as a standard format for the performance evaluation report of public institutions. The GRI method, the world’s most widely used sustainability report format, can be used to prepare a performance evaluation report for public institutions.

    If the reporting format is adopted following international standards and experts in the field evaluate the report by international standards, the management of public institutions in Korea will be internationally certified. For example, disclosure using the GRI criteria in the pursuit of achieving the UN SDGs will increase consistency between objectives and reporting and result in a self-contained quality ESG evaluation.

    However, in reality, since this work takes a lot of time, it is necessary to thoroughly analyze the current performance evaluation indicators of public institutions from an ESG perspective and add new indicators. It is also a natural step to change the allocation percentage of the changed indicators.

    Analyzing the 2022 management evaluation indicators released at the end of 2021 from the perspective of ESG, too much focus on the social sector was found. In the case of the environment, only 0.5 out of 50, and the governance structure is only about 7.5. On the other hand, 32.5 points are assigned to the social sector. making it difficult to evaluate ESG in a balanced manner with the existing performance evaluation indicators. Of course, there is a separate auditor evaluation to supplement the governance structure, but it cannot be denied that the performance evaluation as a whole is too biased toward social value evaluation. Therefore, such a system cannot properly evaluate or encourage ESG management of public institutions.

    Therefore, the management evaluation index of public institutions should be revised significantly. It is desirable to classify the whole into five categories: management strategy, governance structure, society, environment, and finance, and balance the proportion of each index at 20%. In addition, it seems necessary to assign five points to ESG among 50 points in the major business sector by establishing an index to evaluate whether the project has been carried out from an ESG perspective.

    In addition, it is necessary to adopt a differentiated evaluation method considering that public companies, quasi-governmental institutions, and other public institutions have different purposes of establishment, management goals, and ESG management environment. 

    In conclusion, ESG management of public institutions should establish a transparent decision-making structure centered on the board of directors in the governance structure, serve as priming water in the environmental sector and pursue social values more actively than the private sector. The government should make efforts to improve the public sector performance evaluation system in consideration of global ESG trends and overseas cases as a powerful means to drive this.

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  • 카타르의 지속가능한 성장 기반 구축 전략과 협력 시사점
    Sustainable Growth Strategy of Qatar and Implications for Cooperation

    As a small state surrounded by great powers such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Iran, Qatar has historically had little influence within its region. Until 1971, Qatar was considered an emirate along with the other emirates, which forme..

    unsu Kang et al. Date 2022.10.31

    경제성장, Economic cooperation
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    Summary
    As a small state surrounded by great powers such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Iran, Qatar has historically had little influence within its region. Until 1971, Qatar was considered an emirate along with the other emirates, which formed the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Following its independence from the United Kingdom in 1971, Qatar did not demonstrate much diplomatic power, but Saudi Arabia exerted a strong influence on Qatar. Since the enthronement of King Hamad in 1995, Qatar has changed its diplomatic route. Aside from rapid economic growth, King Hamad pursued a policy of expanding its external influence through internal reform, neutral intermediaries, and pragmatic diplomacy. Specifically, Qatar has formed defense agreements with Western countries such as the U.S., UK, and France, as well as providing land to the U.S. for military purposes. Qatar not only maintains a friendly relationship with pro-Western nations, it also maintains close ties with anti-Western groups, such as the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas. The broadcasting of Al Jazeera and the hosting of large events (e.g., the 2022 Qatar World Cup) are other ways in which Qatar strengthens its position within the Arab world. As a result, Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, and Bahrain broke their diplomatic ties with Qatar in 2017 and implemented a blockade on the country. Following this, the GCC countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, and Egypt, restored diplomatic relations with Qatar in 2021. As a result, Qatar has emerged as a mediating country expanding its influence, seen for instance in the mediation process of the U.S.-Afghanistan conflict.

    Natural gas exports have contributed to Qatar’s economic growth. With natural gas accounting for 80% of Qatar’s export value, the country is vulnerable to changes in international conditions such as low energy prices. In terms of total gas reserves, Qatar ranks third in the world, and in terms of production volume, it ranks fifth. After Australia, Qatar holds the second largest share of the global natural gas market. In light of Qatar’s high dependence on energy, its GDP has declined since 2013 due to low energy prices. While global energy prices have spiked following the Russia-Ukraine war, the EU, which is highly dependent on Russian gas, has begun to diversify its sources of import. As a result, Qatar is receiving attention from the European Union and Asian countries.

    Korea is Qatar’s top trading partner after Japan, India, and China. In addition, Qatar exports 16.6% of its natural gas volume to Korea. Korea and Qatar have worked to diversify their bilateral economic relationship since 2007, with the two countries holding high-level talks and agreeing to cooperate in the construction, energy, trade, investment, science and technology, health, defense, and education sectors. However, these efforts have not produced any notable developments to date, except in the energy sector. This study aims to propose bilateral cooperation strategies between the two countries beyond the area of natural resource trade.

    The second chapter examines the internal and external environment as well as the national development strategy of Qatar. Several initiatives have been launched by the Qatari government to advance a sustainable society by reducing carbon emissions and responding to the effects of climate change. Among these initiatives are the Education City, the Al Jazeera broadcast, and the Science and Technology Park. Qatar also benefits from a favorable environment due to the high demand for natural resources from abroad. Due to this situation, Qatar has announced plans to diversify its economy and become a more sustainable society. To overcome its economic vulnerabilities and drive green transition, Qatar announced its Vision 2030 and National Development Plan 2018-22, focusing on economic diversity, environmental sustainability, human development, and social inclusion. Qatar has also launched a Smart City, e-Government, and the Smart Qatar program (e.g., Hukoomi) incorporating digital technology. As part of its efforts to diversify its economic structure, the Free Zone Authority was established and investment regulations were relaxed in order to attract foreign investors.

    The bilateral relationship between Korea and Qatar has been described in Chapter 3, along with the demand for sector-specific cooperation. As part of our study, we selected five sectors, which include energy, digital technologies, food and water security, education, and health. In order to achieve an energy mix and industrial diversification, Qatar is developing the petrochemical sector and solar energy. Qatar strives to digitalize the public sector by integrating digital technology into all government sectors. Despite Qatar’s stable position in terms of food security, climate change may raise food and water security issues. Qatar does not perform well in the natural resource and resilience index despite its high food security index, compared to other developed countries, because of the extreme weather conditions. The Qatari government has therefore invested in adopting smart farms and reusing wastewater in agriculture as a result. There is a high demand in the education and health sectors for high-level education, science and technology, human resource development, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals.

    In Chapter 4, we identify potential areas of cooperation between Korea and Qatar. Our analysis in previous chapters indicates that solar power, desalination, smart farming, education with digital technology, and health services could be areas of potential cooperation between the two countries. It may also be possible to encourage the private sector to participate and cooperate between two countries by holding regular high-level meetings.

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