South Korean ambassador hails Pakasa Youth Awards initiative

Apr 08, 2016

Speaking to the New Vision team that had gone to brief him about the progress of the just concluded Pakasa Youth Awards in his office last week, Jong-Dae said that the system of relying on assistance from elsewhere (development partners) although convenient in the short term, is incapable of spurring sustainable development in Uganda.

Park Jong-Dae, the South Korean Ambassador to Uganda, has said that if Uganda is to realize sustainable development in the long run, Ugandans themselves, especially the youth, need initiatives to develop themselves.

Speaking to the New Vision team that had gone to brief him about the progress of the just concluded Pakasa Youth Awards in his office last week, Jong-Dae said that the system of relying on assistance from elsewhere (development partners) although convenient in the short term, is incapable of spurring sustainable development in Uganda.

"Over 70% of the population of this country is below the age of 30. This is an opportunity when you consider that many developed nations are struggling with an aging population. Development in Uganda therefore has to start within the youth; through self-help projects that would eventually improve the standards of living and transform into national development," he said.

The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Uganda and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) are among the key sponsors of the Pakasa Youth Awards. After the award-giving ceremony slated for May 6, the Koreans will fly 10 lucky young entrepreneurs on an all-expenses paid trip to South Korea later in the year. While in Korea, the winners will tour multinational conglomerate technology companies.

They will also share sh98m which was bequeathed by the Ruparelia Foundation and Centum Investment CEO, James Mworia.

Jong-Dae said the reason they decided to support the Pakasa Youth Awards was because it is encourages the principle of encouraging self-help among the youth who are responsible for spurring development.


"We want to help Ugandans catch up. We realize that if the youth, who are the majority, are inspired to work hard through initiatives (like Pakasa Youth Awards), instead of waiting for help, they will become very productive and build this country," he said.

"We want the youth to take the initiative and lead to create change in Uganda's fortunes because they are agile, energetic and tech savvy. The world today is connected through technology and no one understands that reality like the young people."

He said they also wanted to challenge the older generation, who he said are normally supposed to inspire and guide the youth, into action.

He said unlike many nations that have developed from practically nothing, Uganda is endowed with a lot of natural resources which, if harnessed well, could lead to development.

He said the country was the second largest producer of coffee in Africa and that if production was enhanced, it had potential to fetch a lot of money and make a difference in the economy.  

 

He castigated non-productive activities like sports betting which he said are not only time-wasting and unproductive for the youth but are also exploitative because the money made is all repatriated to the countries from where the companies originate. He called for government regulation of these activities.

Jong-Dae, however, said that it was not enough to encourage entrepreneurial activity among the youth without government assistance.

Citing the highly successful Saemaul Undong system used in South Korea in the 1970s, the ambassador said it would be a mistake to leave development and growth in the hands of the private sector entirely.

"There is no such thing as a total free market economy. It is a myth. Government needs to intervene and regulate the activities of the private sector," he said.

He was, however, quick to caution against over regulation of the private sector, saying that government should rather facilitate the economy by providing a conducive atmosphere for private sector-led growth like good infrastructure and subsidies.

He said government also has to exercise good governance and deliberately put in place mechanisms to stimulate growth and development.      

The Saemaul Undong system

The Saemaul Undong, also known as the New Community Movement, New Village Movement, Saemaul Movement or Saema'eul Movement, was a political initiative launched on April 22, 1970 by South Korean president Park Chung-hee to modernize the rural South Korean economy.

The movement promoted self-help and collaboration among the people during its first phase, as the central government provided a fixed amount of raw materials to each of the participating villages free of charge and entrusted the locals to build whatever they wished with them.

 The government first selected 33,267 villages and provided 335 sacks of cement. 16,600 villages that demonstrated success were then granted additional resources of 500 sacks of cement and a ton of iron bars.

The New Community Movement did much to improve infrastructure in rural South Korea, bringing modernized facilities such as irrigation systems, bridges and roads in rural communities. The program also marked the widespread appearance of orange tiled houses throughout the countryside, replacing the traditional thatched or choga-jip houses.

Encouraged by the success in rural areas, the movement spread through factories and urban areas as well, and became a nationwide modernization movement largely credited for present day development in Korea

 However, the government-led centralized system started experiencing challenges and became less effective after South Korea entered into a more developed and industrialized stage, which diminished the momentum of the movement.

The relatively low income levels in rural areas compared to urban areas became a major political issue in the late 1980s - one that no government intervention was able to fully solve during the first phase - and the movement proved ultimately inadequate in addressing the larger problem of migration from the villages to the cities by the country's younger demographic.

Recognizing these problems, the South Korean government changed the centralized structure of the movement by empowering civil society to lead the movement. Since 1998, the Saemaul Movement has entered into the second phase, focusing on new issues such as enhancing voluntary services in the community and international cooperation with developing countries.

 



Advice to young entrepreneurs

More than ever, the world has become a competitive place. There is nothing for free. If you do not take up the challenge, you will remain where you are.

Learn to endure through the tough times. Do not give up; do not be short-sighted and only look for quick profits. People in Uganda do not endure enough. But if you endure, you will be stronger for it and your venture will become profitable.  

Learn to add value to whatever you are doing. For instance, if you are in agriculture, rather than just produce from the garden, try getting into value addition. This will increase your profitability.

Diligence and self -help are very important but so is work ethic. It is very important that you work hard. In South Korea, the chief executive officer of (the highly successful multinational conglomerate) Samsung; our largest business conglomerate, operates like there's always a crisis.

Do not be scared of small beginnings. Start where you are and strive to excel. For example, Japan started out in a small way; look at where they are now.

Remember that where there is a challenge, there is always opportunity.  For example, the Netherlands is the world's second-largest exporter of food and agricultural products after the United States despite the fact that only about 50% of its land exceeds one metre above sea level. Nearly 17% of the country's current land mass has been reclaimed from the sea and lakes.

South Korea is the world's sixth largest exporter of refined petroleum oil the fact that we do not have any natural resources notwithstanding. We import crude oil which we refine and export.  

 

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