• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.1-19
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• 2022

Purpose - This study empirically investigates the effects of Official Development Assistance (ODA) on the economic activities of private actors in recipient countries. As a proxy for the economic activities of private actors, we utilize the job creation activities of foreign subsidiaries in recipient countries. The foreign subsidiaries provide a foundation for economic development by creating paying jobs. That is, if ODA has been successfully transferred to foreign subsidiaries, then these foreign subsidiaries should help economic growth and help create a boom in the local market by providing jobs. These jobs eventually lead to the achievement of the primary aims of foreign aid, including poverty reduction. Thus, this study empirically examines the relationship between ODA and the number of jobs created by foreign subsidiaries in recipient countries. Design/methodology - This is the first study to examine the effects of the ODA on the job creation of foreign subsidiaries because it has been hard to obtain internal information related to the employment status of foreign subsidiaries. Fortunately, we have a unique panel dataset provided by the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) for 2006 to 2013. In terms of the empirical specification, we use the generalized least squares (GLS) method. The panel GLS estimator allows us to have an efficient estimation that overcomes the limitations of the panel data. It employs assumptions about the heteroscedasticity between the panels and makes an autocorrelation of the error term within each panel. Findings - We find that ODA influences job creation in foreign subsidiaries. In particular, we found that ODA creates more jobs in sales than in managerial or production positions. This study also shows that the effect of the ODA on the foreign subsidiaries' job creation activities depend on the purpose of the ODA. By examining ODA effects on the foreign subsidiaries' economic activities (e.g., job creation), this study fills a gap in the current literature. Originality/value - Existing studies that focus on the ODA effect have either a macroeconomic point or a microeconomic point of view. However, both approaches do not explain how well foreign aid has influenced private economic actors of recipient countries. In essence, previous researchers found it difficult to obtain the necessary data for internal employment status from foreign subsidiaries. However, thanks to the Korea Export-Import Bank, this study shows that ODA indeed influences the job creation activities of foreign subsidiaries even after controlling for other factors such as FDI, GDP growth rate, employment rate, household expenditure, mother firms' share, etc. By doing so, we can examine how ODA influences the job creation of foreign subsidiaries, which might help economic development and reduce the amount of poverty in recipient countries.

• Journal of Korea Trade
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.1-19
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• 2021

Purpose - This paper aims at analyzing the functions and effectiveness of the cooperation agenda in Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), focusing on the cases of Asian countries. This paper estimates the contribution of this agenda to the sustainable development in Asia by providing the 'side payment' of the economic integration that encourages foreign investment and change in global value chains (GVC). Design/methodology - This study analyzes the functions of the cooperation chapter in FTAs by applying the cooperative game theory and reviewing the structures of the related FTAs. Also, as an empirical study, the existing FTA provisions and related development assistant programs in Asia are reviewed in this paper, especially focusing on the FTAs signed by Korea. Findings - Our main findings can be summarized as follows: The drawback of the economic integration, which would be the imbalanced economic benefit, can be redressed by the cooperation chapter in FTAs functioning as a 'side payment'. Indeed, as the examples of Korean FTAs show, more foreign investment and the GVC expansion in Asian countries have been encouraged thanks to the implementation of the cooperation chapters. Originality/value - This paper attempts to find how a legally binding agreement would influence the cooperation agenda in Asia which has never been analyzed despite the increasing number of so-called 'cooperation' chapters in the FTAs.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.144-154
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• 2018

While the local construction market has lost its steam in recent years, it is discussed that the overseas construction projects should be activated by using the Official Development Assistance (ODA) in terms of finding a new way. This study empirically identifies the relationship between ODA and the foreign construction orders, and discovers the effectiveness of orders for overseas construction projects using the ODA. Therefore, based on the past 25 years of time-series data on Asia, the VECM model was used to identify the relationship between the Asia country's ODA and construction orders. As a result, it has shown a lower-than-expected correlation between the value of ODA and the construction orders. There are several reasons for this; This is because profit-purpose construction projects and ODA for public welfare are fundamentally different, and the timing of ODA applications and overseas construction orders are different. Also, compared to other developed countries, Korea has far less experience and scale of ODA. At last, there are huge differences in the size of ODA and construction orders. In conclusion, although the effectiveness of overseas construction orders based on ODA was not clearly disclosed, the significance of this study is that it attempted to conduct a empirical study on the relationship between ODA and overseas construction orders. Further relationships are expected to be drawn through the accumulation of future ODA experience and the supplementation of time series data, which can provide on a theoretical and practical basis.

• Journal of the Economic Geographical Society of Korea
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.405-421
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• 2019

International aid to North Korea remains far below the humanitarian needs of vulnerable people. This paper examines the trajectory of international humanitarian assistance to North Korea over the last two decades with the focus on its decline in the context of the country's nuclear standoff and corresponding stringent sanctions. In so doing, the paper addresses major problems associated with North Korea's reception of foreign aid and operational constraints placed on humanitarian activities in the country. It shows that humanitarian assistance to North Korea has been largely shaped by geopolitical dynamics. A survey of UN reports and statistics also suggests a shifting trend in recent international aid to North Korea. The decline of aid and multiple operational obstacles faced by humanitarian organizations, for instance, have led to a fall in agricultural support and a proportional rise in health and related services. While UN Security Council resolutions include an exemption provision, humanitarian assistance to North Korea has been constrained by stringent sanctions, which have led to adverse consequences for the civilian population. In this regard, the paper suggests some policy directions for international aid to North Korea amidst negotiations over denuclearization, while stressing an urgent need to address the negative impact of sanctions on vulnerable groups in the country.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.41-74
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• 2007

This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of Korea's official development assistance (ODA) in terms of improvement in per capita gross domestic product (GDP) of aid recipients, and promotion of Korea's exports and outward foreign direct investments (FDI) to ODA recipients. The assessment has also been done for different groups of aid recipient countries divided by their regional location, income level, and economic freedom. For this purpose, this paper empirically tests the effectiveness of bilateral grants and loans for 163 aid recipient countries during the period of 1990 to 2003. Results show that ODA from Korea had not been able to explain the variations in aid recipient countries' growth in per capita GDP. Provision of aid promoted outward FDI to aid recipient countries during the entire period considered. With respect to exports, provision of aid had facilitated Korea's exports to aid recipient countries, except for the period of 2000~2003. On the basis of the findings, recommendations for future aid policy have been made.