[In depth interview] Changing Korea, one number at a time
Published: 27 Oct. 2009, 20:44
Commissioner Yi In-sill, National Statistical Office
The biggest international gathering in Korea until the G-20, the forum will include discussions of alternative ways of measuring economic development. According to Yi In-sill, commissioner of the National Statistical Office, the local organizer of the OECD World Forum, Korea’s hosting the event shows that it is not obsessed with gross domestic product ranks.
Over 1,500 delegates from 103 countries, international organizations and civic groups will participate in the World Forum at the Bexco convention center in the southeastern port city. Among the participants are Nobel laureate in economics Joseph Stiglitz from the United States, Secretary General of the OECD Angel Gurria, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Slovenian President Danilo Turk.
In an interview last week, Yi said Korea is very interested in quality of life, as shown by its green growth initiative, and the World Forum will highlight this. She also spoke about the obstacles the state statistics agency faces and how it will surmount them. Yi, a former economics professor at Sogang University, took office as NSO commissioner in July.
Q. What do you expect from this World Forum?
A. The motto of this OECD World Forum is “Beyond GDP.” There has been criticism that the gross domestic product developed by Simon Kuznets shows only the aggregation of transactions made on the market. Policy makers have set up economic policies based on it alone. But there are many areas GDP data don’t account for, such as the environment, happiness, health and social integration.
So at the World Forum we will discuss how to cover what GDP does not. That is a very complicated process with a lot to consider, but it must be done.
There are various ways to improve on GDP. The models we will discuss at the World Forum will encompass overall social progress. Many countries are working on alternatives, such as Canada’s Canadian Index of Well-being. Korea is also conducting much research on gauges of progress in each of the social sectors. These developing ideas will be also exchanged at the World Forum.
The government is trying to make Korea a competitive power in green growth. Do you have a way to measure green growth statistically?
We are currently in the process of developing statistics that will measure the various aspects of green growth. We don’t yet have specific results, but we will continue to talk with the Presidential Commission on Green Growth on how to develop such statistics. When developed, I believe they will show that Korea is really serious about quality of life, beyond mere rhetoric.
Why did the National Statistical Office handle the World Forum and not another government agency?
Everybody knows the importance of statistics. But there is not much awareness about the links between policies and statistics. I think this is a good chance to remind people about the role the NSO plays and will play in helping form national policy.
You were once a professor. What is it like working at the NSO now?
I appreciate my work at the NSO because my expertise in economics is utilized and here I can be politically neutral. There is a mountain of things to do, but I am so happy to work here that I can feel the endorphins flooding into my body every morning.
But we still have a way to go in improving statistics. The right statistics make the right country - that is our belief.
Some have said the role of the NSO is limited to releasing data, not interpreting it.
Many statisticians at the NSO are proud to be neutral on the issues we are producing data about. It is very difficult to decide how much analysis should be involved. We try to stay in a manufacturers’ role and maintain political neutrality. But we are aware that further explanation can make statistics better understood. Sooner or later, there will be a change. We are discussing what to do.
Experts have said the reports from the National Statistical Office are too complex for the general public. What do you think?
We think there should be a change in the way that we produce statistics, and there has been an internal discussion about that. We think we need to produce statistics for the general public separately from statistics for the experts. The general public will have a much better understanding of what is going on with easier statistics, and experts will be able to come up with better and more effective policies with more detailed data.
We think statistics tailored for businesses also need to be produced. If companies make good use of statistics for their marketing, it will be much better. I talked to a vice chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries on this issue. We are also considering a plan to process statistics and sell them. The Korea Statistics Promotion Institute is a government agency allowed to sell some detailed content based on the statistics the NSO produces. We need to change the law to bring the KSPI under the wings of the NSO.
You are the first ever female head of the NSO. Since you took office, the number of female employees has increased. What is your goal in terms of gender equality at your organization? NSO statistics show there is still a large gender gap in Korea in many sectors of society. What do you want to see happen?
The NSO has the second-largest percentage of female employees among government agencies, next to the Ministry of Gender Equality. Currently, 39 percent of NSO employees are females. It is not easy to raise the number of females over a short period of time, but given the fact that half of the global population is female, our goal is to make it half-and-half. I hope that will be the case for every part of Korea in the future.
What are your other plans?
We plan to conduct a population census next year. That will cost 180 billion won ($151.6 million), almost the same as the annual budget for the NSO, 200 billion won. So we will need a budget of around 400 billion won next year. The census is necessary. There has been a great deal of change in demographics. It is estimated that one-person households now make up more than 20 percent of all households. Records of people’s residential addresses and what kinds of business activities they are involved in also need to be updated.
By Moon Gwang-lip [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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