First of all, I would like to express my admiration and appreciation to our hosts, the Ministry of Education of Korea and the Ewha Womans University for their initiative in organizing this APEC International Roundtable. My thanks also goes to the Asian Development Bank for its valuable support. Ladies and gentlemen, At the close of the 20 th century, mankind has witnessed the unprecedented progress in information and communication technology which has brought about profound changes in almost all aspects of our life.
Education is no exception.
With the advent of New Economy characterized by ICT and increasing dependent on knowledge, education has become a decisive factor for the progress of society and the sustainable growth of economy. It determines how much and how fast an economy can benefit from globalization. New economy in essence is knowledge-based economy with education as its very foundation. Nowadays, education for most people is already a part of their life. But to provide education for all and for lifelong is still a noble vision yet to be realized.