OECD urges education reform in South Korea

Seoul, Mar 19: South Korea should improve its university-level education as part of reforms needed to close its gap with more advanced countries, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said today.

Change to the highly regulated education system was necessary as the country grapples with an ageing population and unproductive service sector, it said in a report.

''While Korea's primary and secondary education levels are excellent ... there is still scope for improving the quality of tertiary education to ensure an adequate supply of high-skilled human capital,'' the Paris-based group said.

The OECD advised South Korea to give more autonomy to public universities and establish a system to improve quality control and accountability.

The OECD report focused on South Korea's efforts to strengthen its regulatory system and make its economy and society more transparent and competitive.

The 30-member group noted South Korea's service sector was only about 60 per cent as productive as the OECD average, calling the service industries and farming sector ''specific challenge areas'' in terms of market opening.

Following a war with the communist North, South Korea has built the world's 11th-largest economy in five decades of industrialisation, supported with state protection of homegrown businesses from foreign competition.

It removed much of the protectionist policy as part of a near 60 billion dollar international rescue during the 1997-1998 Asia financial crisis.

But the OECD said there was still much to do.

''If Korea is to continue closing its gap in relation to the most advanced countries, it needs to make even faster progress, to ensure smoother market processes, better regulatory tools and more open institutions.''

Reuters