When the Korean War ended in the early 1950s, South Korea was one of the poorest nations in the world. The country's GDP per capita was less than 100 dollars, and most of the nation lay in ruins. At that time, Korea survived on foreign aid, and few believed it could stand on its own feet, let alone rise to prosperity.
But what unfolded over the next few decades became known as the "Miracle on the Han River". South Korea achieved a transformation no other country in modern history has managed at the same speed or scale. In just two generations, it went from being a UN aid recipient to becoming a major donor country. By 2009, Korea had even become the first nation in the world to move from receiving development assistance from the OECD to providing it to others—a complete reversal of fortune.
The story of growth is equally striking. In the 1960s, Korea's exports were mostly wigs and simple textiles. Yet within half a century, the country was leading the world in semiconductors, shipbuilding, automobiles, and, more recently, K-culture and artificial intelligence research. By 2023, its GDP per capita had surpassed 34,000 dollars, representing more than a 300-fold increase within a single lifetime.
This astonishing journey was powered by determination, education, and innovation. It wasn't just about numbers, but about resilience: a nation once devastated by war rebuilt itself into one of the world's most advanced societies. That is why economists and historians alike still call it a miracle—one written not by chance, but by the collective effort of its people. Finally in 2025, we get to host MICCAI in South Korea!