Gyeongbuk Province Provides Free Masks to Children and Welfare Facilities

Gyeongbuk Province COVID-19 Regular Briefing

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Young-wook] Gyeongbuk Province will provide free masks to children aged 2 to 6 and welfare facilities within the province.

According to Gyeongbuk Province on the 11th, these masks are funded by the Disaster Safety Fund and donations, and will be distributed from the 12th to children aged 2 to 6 and social welfare facilities under cohort isolation.

A total of 297,500 masks will be provided, with 3 masks per child (2 masks for 2-year-olds) to 10,310 children aged 2 to 6 in the province. For social welfare facilities under cohort isolation, 215,000 masks will be supplied, allowing 5 masks per person.

Among these, 65,000 masks were donated by the Community Chest of Korea, and 150,000 masks were donated by Jack Ma, the founder and former chairman of Alibaba, the province stated.

Meanwhile, the province is developing a filter-replaceable cotton mask using SB (spunbond) nonwoven fabric as a filter, and plans to produce 3,000 units on the 12th for pilot distribution.

The province initially planned to produce more than 150,000 of these masks and prioritize distribution to elderly people aged 80 and above and public officials, but the distribution is expected to be delayed due to scarcity of cotton mask materials.

Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, said, "Other cities and provinces are requesting masks and some are trying to produce them independently, showing that these masks are very popular nationwide," adding, "We are looking for ways to mass-produce them."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.