The Foreign Ministry launched a new institute to nurture competent diplomats in Seoul on Tuesday.

The Korea National Diplomatic Academy will be led by former presidential secretary for foreign affairs and security Kim Byung-kook. Kim is currently the chief of the Korea Foundation.

The new school was established to improve the selection process for and the quality of diplomats.

The candidates will be given experience and participation oriented training for one year in order to develop them into individuals with principles for public office, expert knowledge and executive abilities, Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Sung-hwan said at the opening ceremony. 

“The training program will be operated so that the candidates will embody the Foreign Ministry’s four core values ― putting the national benefit first, serving the public, contributing to humanity and aiming for the best ― that were established in February,” he said.

The first batch of diplomat candidates who will undergo training at the academy will be selected during the second half of next year.

The one-year training program will begin in 2013, and a number of candidates will be dropped according to their achievements. With the academy likely to select about 60 candidates and the Foreign Ministry having selected around 40 new diplomats each year over the past five years, about a third of the candidates are expected to be dropped at the end of the program.

“The newly launched Korea National Diplomatic Academy will contribute significantly to strengthening our diplomatic competitiveness by nurturing elite diplomats and by researching and developing high quality foreign policies,” Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik said, saying that highly trained diplomats were essential in responding to the rapidly changing diplomatic environment.

“Furthermore, it is expected to play a major role in protecting the rights and interests of the nation and the people in this era of limitless global competition.”

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)