Women are taking a bigger role in devising and implementing national policies in South Korea as the number of mid-to-high level female public officials has increased fivefold over the past decade, data showed Tuesday.

According to the data compiled by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, 2,143 female officials were ranked at grade 5 or higher in the administrative branch in 2010, up from 420 in 2000.

South Korea’s officialdom is classified in nine grades, with grade 1 being the highest. Applicants who pass the highly competitive national civil service examinations can skip ahead and start their public careers at grade 5.

The number of female officials at grade 5 increased more than five-fold to 1,700 during the cited period, with grade 4 rising about four-fold to 392 and grade 3 by three-fold to 51, the data showed.

The home ministry attributed the surge in female executive-level public officials to an increased number of applicants passing the national exams to become civil servants.

In 2010, 47.7 percent of the successful candidates taking the public administration examination were female, up from 22.5 percent in 2000, while women made up 60 percent of applicants who passed the foreign service exam in 2010, up from 20 percent in 2000, the data showed. 

(Yonhap News)