Prime Minister Jeong: "More Room to Discuss Normalizing Economic Life... Need to Promote Consumption of Agricultural and Marine Products"

Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, marking his 100th day in office, is speaking at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on COVID-19 response held on the 22nd at the Seoul Situation Center in the Central Disaster and Safety Situation Room of the Government Seoul Office Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwangho Lee] Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said on the 22nd regarding the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) situation, "We cannot let our guard down because a large-scale resurgence can occur at any time, but we now have enough leeway to discuss the normalization of economic life, which has been devastated by COVID-19."

On the same day, Prime Minister Chung presided over the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters (CDSCH) meeting on COVID-19 held at the Government Seoul Office and stated, "The number of new confirmed cases has decreased to around 10 over the past three days, and the overall situation is being managed stably."

Prime Minister Chung pointed out, "COVID-19 has not only taken away our daily lives but also made economic activities difficult, devastating the national economy. There is no one unaffected, from young people preparing for employment to self-employed individuals, wage earners, and business owners."

He continued, "The vulnerable groups are immediately threatened in their livelihoods, and companies are facing survival issues. The truly frightening thing is that no one can easily predict how far this ripple effect will go."

Prime Minister Chung said, "The lives of farmers and fishermen are no different," explaining, "International logistics have been paralyzed, blocking export routes, and a large quantity of eco-friendly agricultural products consumed through school meals are being discarded without even being harvested."

He added, "Most events such as entrance and graduation ceremonies and weddings have been canceled, causing the hearts of flower farmers to burn with worry. Although provincial governors are taking the lead in promoting sales through various methods such as social network service (SNS) promotions, eco-friendly agricultural product bundles, and drive-thru sales, there are limits."

Prime Minister Chung said, "In today's meeting, we will discuss the consumption promotion measures for agricultural and marine products prepared by related ministries and share ideas from local governments. The home shopping industry plans to specially schedule broadcasts for regional specialty agricultural and marine products sales in May."

He expressed gratitude, saying, "Along with cooperation in broadcasting, I would like to thank the home shopping industry, which has decided to drastically lower commissions and prepay payments in consideration of the difficult local circumstances."

Prime Minister Chung emphasized, "The cooperation of the public is essential to promote the consumption of our agricultural and marine products. This is the path to economic normalization."

He also expressed, "The most painful moments of COVID-19 were overcome by the participation and solidarity of the people. I believe that mutual consideration and participation will also accelerate normalization in the economy."

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