1. The Republic of Korea has become the 24th member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee 
with unanimous approval by all DAC member states at a special session for Korea’s accession to the DAC, 
held at the OECD Headquarters in Paris on November 25 (local time). Korea’s DAC membership formally 
begins on January 1, 2010.

※ The Korean delegation comprises officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ministry of 
Strategy and Finance, Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), and Export-Import Bank of Korea, 
including Deputy Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs of MOFAT Oh Joon and Director-General of the 
International Economic Affairs Bureau of MOSF Joo Hyung-hwan, as well as Ambassador Kim Choong-soo 
from the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Korea to the OECD.

2. The special session for Korea’s accession to the DAC, presided over by DAC Chair Eckhard Deutscher, 
was attended by representatives of 23 DAC member states and the OECD DAC Secretariat. The special 
session started with a presentation of DAC Secretariat’s report on the results of the review of Korea’s 
readiness for accession, followed by questions from DAC members regarding Korea’s assistance activities 
and answers from the Korean delegation, and a closed-door discussion among DAC members about 
Korea’s membership with the Korean delegation out of the room.

ㅇ DAC member states placed great significance on the accession of Korea, the only country that has turned 
from recipient to donor. Korea was highly recognized for its mid- and long-term plan for ODA expansion, 
improvement efforts to build an aid system that meets the DAC criteria, and efforts to host the fourth 
High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Seoul in 2011, the largest and highest-level meeting in the 
development assistance area.

3. Immediately following the meeting, DAC Chair Eckhard Deutscher handed the Korean delegation 
a letter of invitation for Korea’s DAC membership. In response, the Korean delegation delivered OECD 
Secretary-General Angel Gurría a letter of acceptance in the name of Ambassador Kim Choong-soo, 
Permanent Representative of Korea to the OECD, which completed the DAC accession process.

4. Upon the exchange of letters, a reception, hosted by Ambassador Kim Choong-soo, was held at 
the OECD Headquarters to celebrate Korea’s accession to the DAC.

ㅇ The event was joined by around 200 people, including the OECD Secretary-General and Deputy 
Secretary-General, the DAC Chair, ambassadors from DAC members, OECD Secretariat officials, 
and journalists.

5. By joining the DAC, Korea has been officially recognized as a country that has transformed itself from 
an emerging donor to an advanced donor. It will help elevate Korea’s international stature by reaffirming 
its determination to make contributions to the international community.

6. With the accession to the DAC, the Korean government will continue to make good on its promise to 
increase Korea’s ODA to 0.25% of its gross national income (GNI) by 2015, and also advance Korea's aid 
system to meet the DAC’s standards. To this end, the government will focus on increasing the use of 
untied aid, enhancing aid effectiveness, strengthening the link between grants and concessional loans, 
and pursuing the enactment of a basic law on ODA.

7. Also, Korea will play a bridging role between developed and developing nations based on Korea’s 
development experiences of the past in a development environment that has changed due to the emergence 
of various aid donors. In particular, Korea wants to contribute to forming a more inclusive global partnership 
for development cooperation by successfully hosting the fourth High-Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in 
Seoul in 2011. 


                                      Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFAT

* unofficial translation