Good morning, fellow Koreans,

Since I spoke about “ecosystemic development” in my recent Liberation Day speech, there seems to have been much discussion about it. I believe it means that our society is fully relating to the underlying purpose of ecosystemic development, which is intended to make a compassionate society where all citizens are better off.

I have had many thoughts on this issue for a long time. When I served as Mayor of Seoul, our country was on the threshold of opening the era of US$20,000 in per capita income. Nonetheless, there was a sad story that all the members of a family threw themselves into the Han River one day because of their unbearable poverty.

I seriously pondered what should be done to help make all citizens better off and came up with “compassionate Seoul” as a priority goal of the municipal government.

As part of efforts to fulfill that vision, the Seoul city provided homeless people with jobs and gave scholarships to students who otherwise would have had no choice but to quit high school. Out of a similar concern, the city government decided to provide accommodations at convalescent facilities for all poor, senior citizens with dementia.

The global financial crisis that erupted in 2008 only deepened such concerns.

Korea has successfully overcome the crisis and is now regarded as an exemplary model; it pulled off remarkable economic growth above 6 percent in the face of many difficulties. Despite that, the economy felt by working-class and middle-class households has not improved substantially.

Of course, it was not a problem only for us. Leaders of many advanced countries, too, were agonizing over the murderous unemployment rate and the gaping disparity between rich and poor.

From a broader perspective, these problems represent the downside of the trends of the times—globalization and informatization. With the help of globalization and informatization, our life has become much easier while the areas of activities have been expanded, but global competition has further widened the gap between those who are ahead of others and those who are left behind.

Considering this change of the times, I elaborated on ecosystemic development in my Liberation Day speech.

The ultimate goal of ecosystemic development is to create a community where people can coexist and help one another like an ecosystem.

It is also aimed at building a warm-hearted society in which the strong and the weak, the haves and have-nots and big businesses and small businesses can work together for the sake of common progress.

The news about the recent fiscal crises in the United States and some other European countries served as an occasion for me to give more concrete shape to this concept. If Korea successfully puts the idea of ecosystemic development into practice as planned, it would be able to put forth yet another solution to address global problems.

The key to the success of ecosystemic development is the fiscal soundness of our nation. Only when our nation maintains sound finances would it be possible for the Government to take care of low-income families who suffer first when the economy is bad.

In this connection, the Government is striving to achieve a balanced budget by 2013.

If we fail to secure fiscal soundness amidst the rapidly changing global economy, it would be tantamount to voyaging on a vast sea in a leaky boat. We can learn a great lesson from some southern European countries, which are on the brink of national bankruptcy due to indiscriminately expanded welfare benefits instituted to win the favor of the public.

Professor Aristides N. Hatzis of the University of Athens, who has recently visited Korea, gave us poignant advice.

He said that the bankruptcy in Greece is attributable to two giant political parties, which competitively engaged in welfare populism. He emphatically noted that Korea should never follow the suit of Greece. 

The entitlement policies that are being carried out already are hard to stop. When unreasonable policies result in wasting money, the consequence is government debt. The whole amount of which will then be turned over to our children, weighing them down. My heart aches because we may have to impose a heavier weight on them when we are already living in uncertain times that make it difficult for us to give hope to our children. 

The accelerating aging of society coupled with a low birth rate is another burden that the next generation will have to bear. By 2050, working people will be reduced by half, and the population that they will have to support will increase drastically. Right now, an average of seven working people support one person, but when the time comes 1.4 people will be required to support one person. That is a very difficult situation.

Some time ago, I had a chance to meet a group of young people over lunch and conversed with them freely. Some of them said, “Won’t it be too hard for our generation, if we are forced to pay the expected reunification costs as well as for the welfare of our parents’ generation?” I could not flatly deny the possibility.

How can we transfer our burdens to our children just because we want to live a comfortable life now?

Fellow Koreans,

The Government will do all it can for the sake of low and middle-income families, and at the same time, it will strive to maintain the soundness of government finances. In order to help citizens in need, the Government will strengthen its customized welfare system while beefing up its fiscal status.

Still there are many citizens who live in the blind spots of the welfare system. Last June, the Government identified 24,000 vulnerable individuals hidden in them. The Government will continue to prepare institutional devices to help them.

The Government promises to manage the finances of the Government very carefully, but we will also think about your hardships along the way.

This summer, Korea had unusually heavy rains. For the first time in a long while, we have been anxiously waiting for sunshine. I only hope that we will not have any more damage stemming from rain. I also hope our farmers will have good harvests.

Thank you very much.