U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has introduced the Korean success story in urging
African leaders to put an end to their people's suffering caused by regional conflicts and to strive to achieve economic development.

Speaking at the African Union Summit in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa on Monday, the U.N. chief talked about his childhood growing up in a war-torn country marked by starvation, disease and suffering.

He called on African leaders to take a cue from South Korea, which rose from the ashes of the Korean War to achieve economic development, in turning the world’s poorest continent into an example of economic success. He said that goal-driven and united South Koreans made their country into one of the world’s economic powerhouses.

Ban urged African leaders to set common goals, saying that the overriding goal of economic development brought the Korean people together.