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| President Yoon Suk-yeol, right, shakes hands with U.S President Joe Biden ahead of their summit held at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Saturday. Newsis |
Two countries set to enhance cooperation in health sector
By Lee Hyo-jin
Korea and the United States have agreed to establish a global health security (GHS) office in Seoul, which is expected to increase Korea's role in the US-led health security initiative.
This decision was announced during a summit between President Yoon Suk-yeol and his U.S. counterpart, Joe Biden, on Saturday, where the two sides vowed to enhance their alliance in the health sector, a field which increasingly requires cross-country cooperation amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, among other areas.
Through a joint statement, the two leaders announced that the cooperation between the countries will further expand beyond responding to the coronavirus pandemic, to preventing future health crises through early prevention and detection.
To move towards this goal, Korea will increase its engagement in the global health security agenda (GHSA) steering group, and has pledged a new commitment of $200 million until 2025 to better support the GHSA target.
The GHSA, launched by the U.S. in 2014, is a group of more than 70 countries, international organizations, non-government organizations and private companies that are committed to establishing a systematic response system against threats posed by emerging infectious diseases such as Ebola, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and antibiotic resistance bacteria.
The two leaders also agreed to set up a GHSA office in Seoul, although detailed plans have not been fixed. The agreement underscores Korea's increased role in the global health initiative.
Once established, various health experts from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) will be dispatched to work with local staff from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).
In November, Korea will host the 7th GHSA ministerial meeting, where it is expected to share its experience and knowledge on pandemic responses to other countries that are preparing to enter a post-COVID-19 era. The hosting of the high-level meeting is anticipated to serve as an opportunity for Korea to take a leading role in building a global network for sharing information about infectious diseases and their management.
Korea's management of the COVID-19 pandemic has been an opportunity for the country to enhance its presence and standing on the global stage.
During a virtual global COVID-19 summit on May 12, Yoon stressed that Korea is prepared to play a bigger role in the battle against the pandemic, pledging that his government will make a $300-million contribution to the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-A), a global initiative on accelerating development, production and equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments and vaccines.
In February of this year, Korea was selected as the World Health Organization's (WHO) vaccine global manufacturing training hub, to serve low- and middle-income countries to produce drugs such as vaccines and treatments for COVID-19, as well as in preparation for future pandemics.
Two training centers ― in Incheon's Songdo and North Chungcheong Province's Osong ― that are already carrying out bio-manufacturing training for local companies, are set to expand their operations to accommodate trainees from other countries.
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