Pres. Lee Urges `Ecosystem Change` in Business

President Lee Myung-bak said Wednesday, “Having large and small companies grow together is to fundamentally change the ecosystem of Korean industries. This will also lay the strong groundwork for a fair society.”

Government officials quoted President Lee as saying this at every strategic meeting on the joint growth of large and small companies. This perception was reflected in a joint news statement of related ministries released Wednesday.

People in and outside of the government say helping large and small and mid-size businesses grow together is President Lee’s strong commitment and reflected in detailed measures.

The president’s determination on this matter is so firm that certain officials even said he is most aggressive on this issue.

At the final review meeting on the strategy held at the presidential office several days ago, he reportedly urged more aggressive and fundamental measures by saying, “I served as a CEO in various sectors. The measures devised by related ministries are not enough to achieve the expected results and to receive favorable responses from both big and small and mid-size companies.”

A key ruling party source also said, “Under the Park Chung-hee administration, companies that achieved good export performance received the best treatment because the focus at the time was national development through exports. But the joint growth of big and small companies will be the prime value of the (incumbent) government’s economic policies over its remaining term.”

Despite the growth of the economy, President Lee is known to have envisioned the joint growth strategy for tackling chronic problems in the Korean economy, including the failure of the growth of big companies to pursue joint growth with smaller companies and the lack of jobs, especially for young people.

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