Evaluating the Effectiveness of Interventions: Practices and Outcomes from Rural Development to Educational Support

[2J204] Transferring a Rural Development Model-Adapting South Korea's Saemaul in Uganda-

*Hyomin JUNG¹ (1. Yokohama National University)

Keywords:Saemaul, Rural development , Uganda

The Saemaul Undong (New Village Movement: hereafter Saemaul) is a rural development policy in South Korea which was mainly implemented as a country-based scale in the 1970s. After South Korea transitioned from an aid-recipient to a donor, this experience was promoted as a successful rural development model, with efforts to transfer it for use in developing countries. The Saemaul is often cited as an example of how government support combined with the participation of all villagers could lead to rural development such as establishment of infrastructure and income generation under governmental leadership. This study aims to understand how the Saemaul, which South Korea is attempting to transfer, is being perceived in developing countries, using Uganda as a case study.For this research, fieldwork was conducted in Uganda for approximately two weeks each in August and September 2023 and February 2024. The research involved semi-structured interviews, a focus group interview with Saemaul project stakeholders, and field observations. The results indicate that the Saemaul project in Uganda received minimal aid, with limited support and intervention from the government and the donor. The planning and implementation of the project were largely determined and implemented by the villagers themselves. There were differences compared to Korea's original Saemaul model. In Uganda, the Saemaul has become an advocacy activity that emphasizes a 'self-help' approach and mindset change, rather than serving as a form of aid. Participation of villagers in the Saemaul project was voluntary, open to villagers who chose to join.