Good morning, fellow Koreans,

It has already been a year since I began my biweekly radio address to the nation. Around this time last year, I started my first address by saying, “I know life is hard indeed these days.” That is still fresh in my memory.

The past year has been quite eventful both at home and abroad.

We have pooled our strength in a bid to turn the crisis into an opportunity. Thanks to such efforts, the Republic of Korea is rising to become an even greater nation. My Administration and I pledge once again that we will not let our guard down and will redouble efforts until low-income families can feel the warm, gentle breeze of economic recovery.

There must be nothing more important and urgent in life than making a living. For that reason, I have frequently talked about the economy over the past year.

We all want to live a happier life and make the Republic an advanced nation. To this end, everyone ranging from children to elderly woman should be able to enjoy culture in their everyday life. The advanced country that I envision will not be just a high-income nation. Our goal should be to make a country of culture befitting its economic strength.

Today, I would like to speak with you about culture as October is the Month of Culture. What culture used to mean to me was happiness and leisure. When I was growing up and was so poor, I was really envious of those of my friends who could go to the movies and read books as much as they wanted. The books I read while rubbing my sleepy eyes are still etched deep in my mind.

With my first pay when I was first working overseas, I bought a second-hand camera. When I was promoted to management, the first thing I did was to purchase a stereo. Whenever I went on business trips abroad, I would plan ahead to go to concerts or art exhibitions. Music from the FM radio in the office sometimes inspired me with creative ideas. Cultural interaction with people from various backgrounds offered me an opportunity to recharge myself with positive and hopeful energy.

These days, I meet many leaders from around the world. Most heads of state or government of what we call advanced countries bring books to the summit conference room and read them during breaks. The habit of reading is a natural part of their daily lives. Such an attitude could reveal where a country stands in terms of cultural standards while statistics show a nation’s economic status.

When I was working for a private company, I had a chance to visit the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. What I observed there was the high cultural standard of the Russian people demonstrated by the composition of the audience. People from all walks of life were enjoying the performance.

At that time, I thought that, though the country’s situation could not be worse than this, it could sometime make a turnabout on its own on the very strength of such a cultural potential. I also hit upon the idea that it would be great for the Korean people to be able to enjoy such cultural benefits in their neighborhoods.

I had a similar experience when meeting with leading global CEOs to attract investments in my capacity as the Mayor of Seoul. The questions that I assumed in advance that they would ask had something to do with the economy, including tax rates and any possible economic benefits guaranteed to businesses that would advance to Korea. In contrast to my expectations, they instead asked whether there was an opera house in Seoul. In addition, they also wanted to know how their workers would spend their leisure hours on weekends and whether there were places in the vicinity of companies to take a walk after lunch. Another question they asked was about whether it would be possible to ride a bike downtown on weekends.

They raised such questions first and foremost since, however excellent investment conditions may be, they would not invest in Korea if their workers or family members did not want to live here.

Young people living in the capital area are reluctant to work in provincial areas. I assume this has something to do with differences in cultural opportunities and lifestyles.

So far, most Koreans have been overly concerned with making a living, thus lacking the presence of mind to enjoy cultural activities. However, we have an inborn temperament and strong desires to find delight in culture.

The ideal Korea that I envision is a nation where all citizens can easily access cultural activities in their neighborhood and live a life with dignity.

Korea boasts internationally renowned artists like Paik Nam June and Chung Myung-whun while maintaining high educational standards globally. But there still is much room for improvement in cultural standards of the general public. It is about time the country paid keener attention to nurturing a nation of cultivated citizens.

My Administration has an ambitious plan to expand public access to rich cultural opportunities. The cultural gap existing between different regions and income levels should be reduced greatly.

I envision a country where every citizen can enjoy cultural activities at any time in the farm, mountain and fishing communities or any place else. When the four major rivers project is carried out, various cultural facilities will be established in the adjacent areas. And this requires major investments.

Next year’s budget for the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is expected to exceed 3 trillion won for the first time. The increase rate for the ministry is 20 percent, double the average rise for all government organizations.

A higher budget for culture alone will not make a cultural nation, though. It is a good thing that local government agencies and private enterprises are showing deep interest in cultural projects as well.

In the 21st century, culture is the economy, and the economy is culture by definition. Culture can be considered another industry, producing various products and creating many jobs. It is fortunate for the nation to be endowed with ample cultural talent and abilities.

By now, we recognize that our time-honored culture and traditional foods are something we can be proud of presenting to the international community. We have to let the world know that Korea has a rich cultural legacy as well as a fast-developing economy. In this way, the Republic will be able to sustain prestige as a nation befitting its economic status.

However, we have to remember that the country will be treated as a genuinely cultural nation only when every citizen is refined culturally and has a cosmopolitan outlook.

I am looking forward to seeing you more often at cultural activities. I only hope that the economy will recover soon so that ordinary people will be able to engage in diverse cultural pursuits with ease of mind.

Thank you very much.