Not surprisingly, education received the most attention among East Asian NIEs
which outspend other developing countries of a similar income level. This is considered to be
one aspect of the developmental state in which education was oriented towards the technical
field (for instance, engineering) and it was certain that a competent bureaucracy was required
to carry out this social goal. Furthermore, it is argued that Confucian social values was partly
responsible for the success of the East Asian NIEs, while Islamic and Hindu social values
might have been less conducive to modern economic growth (Oshima, 1993). It is also
evident that government jobs are well paid and carry prestige. In sharp contrast, the Thai
bureaucracy is low paid and full of corruption.