'It's not over until it's over'

Huh Chang, Economy and Finance Deputy Minister for International Affairs / Courtesy of Ministry of Economy and Finance

Huh calls for thorough containment measure

By Lee Kyung-min

Huh Chang, economy and finance deputy minister for international affairs, stressed Thursday the importance of thorough containment measures amid recent signs of a new flare up of COVID-19 infections.

“We should not remain complacent until the infection and its spread is fully brought under control, otherwise months-long successful efforts thus far will be severely undermined,” he told The Korea Times.

The renewed commitment followed a virtual seminar participated in by 100 ministers and vice ministers from developing countries mostly in South and Central Asia.

The teleconference held June 3 was organized jointly by the ministry and the World Bank at the request of the countries that sought to learn from Korea's knowledge and experience in successfully handling the pandemic.

World Bank Vice President Makhtar Diop said Korea's approach taught the countries a valuable lesson in navigating the medical and public health crisis now translating into social and economic anxiety.

At the session, Huh shared academic working and medical papers that conducted a comparative analysis detailing Korea's pandemic handling.

The working paper series published by the American private nonprofit research organization the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) in May said that Korea's testing and tracking policies were “quantitatively much more effective at containing both the spread and GDP losses than a lock-down, regardless of the timing.”

The paper said “if the U.K. had implemented Korea's testing policy, the virus would have been contained at an early stage, resulting in much less infections in the long-run, with only a modest 7 percent drop in GDP compared to the 20 percent drop following the lock-down.”

According to a separate editorial published in May by the BMJ, a weekly peer-reviewed medical journal in the U.K., Korea was quicker to base decisions on the precautionary principle when the evidence was unclear.

“The U.K. government relied heavily on mathematical models and adopted science-led policy, resulting in delays in implementing potentially useful interventions such as the public wearing of face masks. The UK government's proposed testing and contact tracing strategy does not match the Korean approach… An effective contact tracing system is also lacking.” it said.

Huh said maintaining vigilance is crucial amid Korea's elevated standing on the global stage.

“Korea's pandemic control is beyond about offering help. Now it has become the subject of an academic analysis, an indication that the efficacy and viability of Korea's policy directives recognized by the international community are at a different level. We should muster efforts to ensure a full containment of the virus,” he added.