The Role of Japan in Korea's Acquisition of Technology

Abstract

Many developing countries suffer from shortages of technical capabilities which can provide a greater handicap to economic development than shortages of capital. The remarkable success of Korea has attracted much interest in how Korea acquired the requisite technology for its rapid industrial development. The few studies on Korea's technology acquisition tend to credit ‘internal’ factors such as the government's role in purchasing licenses, providing incentives and training. This article adopts a more holistic approach by considering some of the ‘external’ factors, in particular the role of Japan. It analyses first the various channels of technology transfer and shows the strong influence of Japan. Second, it analyses the motives behind Japan's transmission of technology. The article concludes by stressing that, although the role of the government was important, more attention should be given to the interests of the major donor, Japan in order to understand Korea's technological acquisitions.