| Life expectancy at birth (years) | 79.800 |
| Mean years of schooling (of adults) (years) | 11.644 |
| Indicator | Value | Notes |
| Combined gross enrolment ratio in education (both sexes) (%) | 98.5 | 1 |
| Expenditure on education (% of GDP) (%) | 4.2 | |
| Internet users (per100 people) | 75.8 | |
| Mean years of schooling (of adults) (years) | 11.644 | |
| Expected Years of schooling (of children) (years) | 16.822 | 1 |
| GNI per capita (constant 2008 US$PPP) | 29,517.620 |
| Indicator | Value | Notes |
| GDP per capita (2008 PPP US$) (2008 PPP US$) | 29,325.771 | 1 |
| Household final consumption expenditure per capita PPP (constant 2005 international $) | 12,091.0 | |
| GNI per capita (constant 2008 US$PPP) | 29,517.620 |
| Inequality-adjusted HDI value | 0.731 |
| Indicator | Value | Notes |
| Inequality-adjusted education index | 0.663 | 1 |
| Inequality-adjusted life expectancy index | 0.902 | 1 |
| Inequality-adjusted income index | 0.653 | 1 |
| Inequality-adjusted HDI value | 0.731 |
| Gender Inequality Index, value | 0.310 |
| Adjusted net savings (% of GNI) | 21.1 |
| Indicator | Value | Notes |
| Carbon dioxide emissions per capita (tonnes) | 9.9 | |
| Protected area (percentage of terrestrial area) | 2.4 | |
| Adjusted net savings (% of GNI) | 21.1 | 1 |
| Robbery rate (per 100,000) | 10.0 |
| HDI value | 0.877 |
| Indicator | Value | Notes |
| HDI value | 0.877 | |
| Gender Inequality Index, value | 0.310 | 1 |
| Inequality-adjusted HDI value | 0.731 |
| Rank | 12 |
| Year | Korea (Republic of) | East Asia and the Pacific | World |
| 1980 | 0.616 | 0.391 | 0.455 |
| 1990 | 0.725 | 0.474 | 0.526 |
| 2000 | 0.815 | 0.567 | 0.570 |
| 2005 | 0.851 | 0.608 | 0.598 |
| 2006 | 0.858 | 0.617 | 0.604 |
| 2007 | 0.865 | 0.628 | 0.611 |
| 2008 | 0.870 | 0.636 | 0.615 |
| 2009 | 0.872 | 0.643 | 0.619 |
| 2010 | 0.877 | 0.650 | 0.624 |
Human Development Index
Human Development Index: Trends 1980 - present
The Human Development Index - going beyond income
Each year since 1990 the Human Development Report has published the Human Development Index (HDI) which was introduced as an alternative to conventional measures of national development, such as level of income and the rate of economic growth. The HDI represents a push for a broader definition of well-being and provides a composite measure of three basic dimensions of human development: health, education and income. Between 1980 and 2010 Korea (Republic of)'s HDI rose by 1.2% annually from 0.616 to 0.877 today, which gives the country a rank of 12 out of 169 countries with comparable data. The HDI of East Asia and the Pacific as a region increased from 0.391 in 1980 to 0.650 today, placing Korea (Republic of) above the regional average. The HDI trends tell an important story both at the national and regional level and highlight the very large gaps in well-being and life chances that continue to divide our interconnected world. Learn more