S. Korea's quality of life ranks low among major economies

SEOUL, Aug. 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's quality of life ranks low among major advanced economies in the world despite its relatively good macroeconomic indicators, a report showed Sunday. According to the report by the state-run Korea Development Institute (KDI), South Korea's quality-of-life index placed 27th in 2008 among 30 countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Group of 20. The 2008 ranking was unchanged from that in 2000, according to the report, which also covered growth potential, the environment and infrastructure. The finance ministry commissioned the KDI to compile the report based on statistics from the OECD, the United Nations and the World Bank. The report pointed out that South Korea's quality of life has failed to make improvements despite the rapid growth of its economy, Asia's fourth-largest. "In light of the low ranking, South Korea needs to shift its growth-focused development paradigm," the report said. "The country should double efforts to promote a balance between growth and social integration." In terms of growth potential, South Korea's global ranking dropped two notches to 17th in 2008 from 15th in 2000, the report said. South Korea's infrastructure ranking fell to 14th from 13th over the cited period, with its environment standings holding steady at 19th, according to the report.