SEOUL - SENIOR Minister Goh Chok Tong on Thursday spelt out the lessons that South Korea's success over the past decades held for other countries at a forum to mark the country's 60th anniversary.

The three key ingredients for its success are exports, human capital and investments in infrastructure.

'An export-led industrialisation within an open international trading regime is the key to economic growth,' said SM Goh in his congratulatory remarks at a morning panel discussion.

'Hence South Korea's free trade agreements with countries such as Singapore and the United States are crucial.'

SM Goh also saw the development of human capital as part of the driving force that turned Seoul into an economic powerhouse.

'South Korea has a Confucian culture that values education, family, hard work and thrift,' he said.

'It has nurtured a highly educated and skilled competitive workforce within just one generation.'

At the forum, which was attended by the country's corporate and political leaders, SM Goh attributed South Korea's success to investments in infrastructure and research and development.

He gave his take on the challenges ahead for South Korea and the steps Seoul can take to address them.

'South Korea faces competition from China, Vietnam and India. When it seeks to move up the technological ladder and into knowledge-based activities, it will bump its head against developed economies like Japan, Germany and the US,' he said.

He stressed that fundamental economic requirements such as a skilled workforce and an open market should not change. He cautioned that no worker can now expect lifetime employment while cosy relations among politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen would no longer be an asset.

Read the full story in Friday's edition of The Straits Times.