Previous studies on Saemaul ODA have identified key issues such as resident participation, capacity building, localization, and sustainability, but have not systematically mapped evaluation gaps across the constituent domains of Saemaul Undong. This s...
Previous studies on Saemaul ODA have identified key issues such as resident participation, capacity building, localization, and sustainability, but have not systematically mapped evaluation gaps across the constituent domains of Saemaul Undong. This study argues that the shortcomings of current Saemaul ODA evaluation stem not from a deficiency in the OECD DAC criteria themselves, but from the absence of evaluation questions and indicators that translate general criteria into the specific characteristics of Saemaul projects. It therefore aims to identify these evaluation gaps and propose supplementary indicators.
To achieve this, the study combined a literature review with an in-depth case study of the KOICA-implemented “Cambodia Rural Community Development Project Based on Saemaul Undong” (2014–2020). The feasibility study and end-of-project evaluation reports were examined using four domains of Saemaul development cooperation as an analytical framework: education and training, organization and leadership, community and volunteerism, and cooperatives and social economy.
The domain analysis revealed a common limitation: qualitative elements emphasized at the design stage were not translated into distinct indicators within the end-of-project evaluation matrix. Even when quantitative outcomes such as participation rates and income levels exceeded their targets, whether underlying changes in consciousness and community self-reliance had taken root was rarely treated as a core evaluation question. This qualitative gap reflects the structural tendency of standardized evaluation systems to measure only what they are designed to measure.
Drawing on the identified gaps, the study constructed evaluation questions aligned with the six OECD DAC criteria while reflecting the operating principles of Saemaul ODA, which view residents as active agents rather than passive beneficiaries. Based on these questions, sixteen supplementary indicators were derived by mapping the six OECD DAC criteria onto the four domains. By applying international evaluation criteria to a Korean model of development cooperation, this study contributes to the refinement of the Saemaul ODA evaluation system.