Women and Development: The Case of South Korea

During the last three decades, South Korea has experienced a remarkable economic growth that is often referred to as a miracle. The densely populated country, with little arable land, virtually no mineral reserves, and an excessively heavy military burden, has recorded one of the highest rates of economic growth of any country. From 1953 to 1990, South Korea's GNP registered an average annual growth rate of 8 percent, with many peaks over 10 percent. These rates surpassed the 4 to 5 percent of the advanced industrial economies, the socialist countries, and the oil producers. Since independence in 1945, South Korea has evolved from a state of poverty characterized by periodic hunger and starvation to a model case of the newly industrializing countries in the world. Have the spectacular economic development and rapid modernization been accompanied by substantial progress in women's status in South Korea? This study will advance the thesis that, in spite of South Korean women's significant contribution to the export-led economic growth of the country, a reward commensurate with their contribution has not followed. In advancing this thesis, the paper will examine the major theoretical frameworks on women and development, women's role in South Korean economic development, the status of South Korean women in the economic, social, and political arenas, and a series of factors that help account for the backwardness of South Korean women.