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VOL. 27, NO. 44, July18 , 2008 (Shrawan 03 2065 B.S.) |
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“Korea’s Unique Model Of Community Development”
Kim Bok-Hee
Ms Kim Bok-Hee is the Resident Representative of Korea’s overseas assistance agency called KOICA. She has been working in KOICA Nepal Office since last two years. She shared the Korean assistance venture in Nepal with SPOTLIGHT. Excerpts:
How has KOICA been supporting in Nepal’s development efforts?
Since 1991, KOICA has supported various development assistance programs in Nepal to share Korea’s knowledge and experiences accumulated over the course of our own development. Of these development assistance programs, KOICA has put special emphasis on human resources development as it serves as the basis for national development. In line with this, KOICA has dispatched Korea Overseas Volunteers (KOVs) to share our knowledge and technology in the fields of child education, nursing, ICT, automobile repair and rural development, etc. KOICA has also dispatched experts for policy level consultations based on the needs of ministries and organizations of the host countries.
Can you elaborate about your assistance on human resources?
To enhance the capacity building of Nepalese government officials, KOICA invites about 60 to 70 government officials to Korea every year for academic courses and training programs. These courses primarily deal with ICT and the governance sector with an aim to narrow the digital divide, spur economic growth and promote good governance. In addition to this, KOICA also offers courses on rural development, education, vocational training and energy, etc. In recent years, KOICA has focused on project type assistance in sectors relating to education and vocational training, health, and ICT to provide more efficient and result-oriented assistance commensurate with Nepal’s Development Strategies and Millennium Development Goals. Other than this, KOICA supports Korean NGOs in Nepal which are engaged in social welfare at the local level and conducts a provision of equipment such as computer and medical equipment.
What are the areas where KOICA is involved?
KOICA’s significant activity in Nepal began by supporting sericulture development projects from 1993 to 1996 as well as the feasibility study of Modi Khola Hydroelectricity in 1993 and Kanti Rajpath improvement from 1998 to 1999. Since then KOICA has involved itself in various fields of development activities with education, health, ICT and rural development being some of the priority areas of KOICA at present. While focusing its activities in the education and the health sectors, KOICA considers that ICT in recent years has been regarded as one of the essential component for economic development. Against this backdrop, KOICA is planning to expand its assistance programs related to ICT in Nepal. In addition, capacity building in sectors where Nepal has comparative advantages will also be supported.
Korea has been supporting Nepal’s E-governance project, how will Nepal benefit from it?
We are living in an era of information, and access to information is considered as a right which has become a vital issue for the private as well as the public sector. E-governance can contribute to efficient management of the organization and better public services. The obvious benefits from e-governance are increased transparency, less corruption, time saving, greater convenience and cost reduction. Nepal can avail these benefits through the adoption of e-governance to meet people’s growing expectations. But E-governance is a challenging task so that the top leader’s full commitment of implementation and wide range of innovation activities in the ministries are critical for successful E-governance projects.
Along with the IT sector, Korea has a unique model for local development, how can Nepal benefit from these programs?
Rural development is a pivotal issue for Nepal’s economic development and poverty alleviation because 80% of the population and 90% of the poor live in rural areas. Surely Nepal can adopt Korea’s unique model of community development known as “Saemaul Undang (New Community Movement)” in Korea.
Who has initiated the programs?
This movement initiated by the Korean government in the 1970s significantly transformed Korea’s rural areas in multiple dimensions along with the improvement of physical infrastructure and income generation capacities. It also promoted enlightenment of local people through “Saemaul Spirit” diligence, self-reliance, cooperation and leadership training. In fact, in the present context, where the country is in the process of transformation (regional autonomy), the “Saemaul Spirit” model to empower and enlighten rural communities could be a breakthrough for the New Nepal with a national vision of a “prosperous, peaceful and just Nepal.”
Do you have any programs specifically targeted at local development bodies like village development and district development committees?
In fact, KOICA strategically selects its project location where local people can benefit the most. Bearing in mind regional balanced development in Nepal and having scarce resources in remote areas, KOICA has taken District Development Committees (DDC) and Village Development Committees (VDC) into consideration as development partners in the course of project identification so that it can serve the local people. Furthermore, in the placement of Volunteers such as nurses, medical technicians, teachers and engineers, priority has been given to local areas. Some KOVs are working very closely with local government, in particular volunteers in the fields of rural development and social welfare. Besides, the projects for the improvement of sericulture in Khopas and Itahari completed in 1996 are examples of community development. At present, KOICA has closely cooperated with Thimi Municipalty for the hospital construction project in Thimi and with Butwal Municipalty for the vocational training project in Butwal.
How do you see the performance of the projects launched by KOICA?
The performance of projects supported by KOICA is satisfactory. However, monitoring the sustainability of these projects by respective organizations could not be relevantly conducted due mainly to lack of sense of ownership and inefficient management from the Nepalese side.
How many projects are currently going on in Nepal?
KOICA is currently conducting various projects in Nepal. Here, I would like to introduce the three projects. The project for the establishment of the Korea-Nepal Friendship Hospital in Thimi aims to improve public health care services. The project for the establishment of the government integrated data and training center (GIDTC) aims to facilitate efficient e-governance services to the people of Nepal. The GIDTC is expected to open early next year. In recent time, the KOICA Nepal Office has signed the Records of Discussion for the establishment of the Korea-Nepal Institute of Technology in Butwal with CTEVT (Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training). This project aims to solve the severe problem of unemployment by developing human resources through the enhancement of technical skills, especially among youth. It can also contribute to promoting industrial development through the advanced skilled manpower supply based on demands from industry.
KOICA volunteers have been coming to Nepal every year, which areas are they supporting?
From 1991 to 2007, KOICA has dispatched a total of 181 KOVs to Nepal. They have served in various fields such as nursing, medicine, education, IT, agriculture and automobile maintenance. In 2008 alone, KOICA has dispatched a total of 16 New KOVs to Nepal so far. As of July, 2008 there are 47 volunteers. Out of those 18 are providing services in the field of education and computer, 20 in the field of health including two doctors, 1 in the field of rural development, 5 in filed of industry and energy, and 3 in the field of social welfare.
Nepal is concentrating on poverty alleviation, how can KOICA’s programs support this goal?
As a matter of fact, the main policy objective of KOICA has been focusing on poverty alleviation and sustainable economic development in partner countries. KOICA has also made efforts to align its work with and achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) with the international community and partner countries. In this light, KOICA activities in Nepal have been conducted to support poverty alleviation through various programs and in various sectors. The KOICA Nepal Office would like to focus on community development for the direct benefit of poor people more than ever before by supporting a New Community Movement program to Nepal in the future, in particular.
