S. Korea picked as 15th best country in world

By Lee Hyo-sik

South Korea has been ranked the world’s 15th best country by U.S. magazine Newsweek, which cited its high level of education and strong economic dynamism.

The magazine also rated President Lee Myung-bak as one of the world’s 10 most respected leaders, saying his leadership made it possible for Asia’s fourth largest economy to successfully recover from the recent worldwide economic crisis.

In an assessment of five categories covering national well-being ― education, health, quality of life, economic dynamism and the political environment, Newsweek said in its online edition Monday that Korea ranked 15th among 100 nations by receiving 83.28 points out of 100.

Finland topped the list with 89.31 points, followed by Switzerland and Sweden. In Asia, Korea was rated as the second best country after Japan, which ranked ninth worldwide.

By category, the nation received 96.72 points in education, the second highest in the world, thanks to its 99-percent literacy rate and average 16.2 years of schooling. In economic dynamism, it ranked third (73.02 points) for strong gross domestic product (GDP) growth, an improvement in productivity and the ease of doing business.

But Korea performed relatively poorly in advancing its political environment, public health and quality of life. It ranked 19th in political environment, with its public health and quality of life standing at 23rd and 29th, respectively.

``Many organizations measure various aspects of national competitiveness. But none attempt to put them all together. We set out to answer a question that is at once simple and incredibly complex ― if you were born today, which country would provide you the best opportunity to live in a healthy, safe, reasonably prosperous and upwardly mobile life?’’ Newsweek asked.

While admitting its list was not perfect, the magazine said it reveals several important things about the world.

``For starters, smaller is often better. While there’s no denying the vitality of emerging-market giants like China or Brazil or Turkey, they are often bested by tiny nations like Slovenia or Estonia, according to the data, simply because it takes less effort for these countries to improve their overall levels of well-being,’’ it said.

It also said a good, broad-based educational system is crucial, reasoning that it is very closely linked to future economic prosperity, and one of the most important aspects why the U.S., Western Europe, and rich Asian nations like South Korea and Japan score well.

Additionally, the magazine ranked President Lee seventh among the world’s 10 most respected leaders, calling him the CEO-in-charge.

``Drawing on his experience as a former Hyundai CEO, Lee guided Korea Inc. through the global financial crisis, slashing interest rates to historic lows, setting up funds to save troubled banks and companies, and striking currency-swap deals to secure dwindling foreign-currency reserves.’’

It said Lee’s talent will again be on display at the upcoming G20 summit in November in Seoul, which South Korea will host and chair.

한국 15위

미 시사 주간지 뉴스위크가 주관한 세계 최고의 나라 설문조사에서 한국이 높은 수준의 교육과 뛰어난 경제 역동성의 이유로 15위를 차지했다.

뉴스위크는 또한 세계에서 가장 존경 받는 지도자 10명 리스트에 이명박대통령을 올렸으며 그 이유로는 최근 전세계 경제난 속에서 한국을 아시아의 4번째 경제 강국을 끌어 올린 그의 리더쉽을 꼽았다.

삶의 질, 교육, 건강, 경제적 역동성 그리고 정치적 환경, 이 다섯 가지 항목을 토대로 평가를 한 결과 100개의 나라들 중 100점을 총점으로 83.28를 얻으며 한국이 15위에 올랐다고 16일자 온라인판 뉴스위크가 발표했다.

핀란드는 89.31을 받으며 1위에 올랐고 그 뒤를 스위스와 스웨덴이 이었다. 아시아 국가들 중에서는 9위에 오른 일본 다음으로 한국이 2위에 올랐다.

교육분야에서 한국은 99퍼센트의 식자(literacy)율과 평균 교육 기간 16.2년으로 96.72라는 점수를 얻으며 2위를 차지했고, 경제적 역동성 분야에선 빠른 GDP성장과 생산성 향상 등의 이유로 73.02점수를 받아 3위를 기록했다. 그러나 정치적 환경 개선, 건강 및 삶의 질 부분에서는 비교적 낮은 점수를 얻었다.