Deputy Prime Minister Hong Nam-ki to Lead 'Economic Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters' for COVID Response... Kickoff Meeting Next Week

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Nam-ki is attending the Cabinet meeting held at the Government Seoul Office on the 21st. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Hyunjung (Sejong), Joo Sangdon (Sejong), Jang Sehee] The Central Emergency Economic Countermeasures Headquarters to respond to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) crisis will be organized under the leadership of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Hong Namki. This marks the conclusion of the response measures through the emergency economic meetings previously presided over directly by the President, transitioning to a second-phase system centered on Deputy Prime Minister Hong.

On the 22nd, the government announced at a joint briefing with related ministries that it will operate the Economic Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (Economic Central Headquarters), a pan-governmental body to consolidate capabilities for managing and overcoming the COVID-19 crisis. Deputy Prime Minister Hong will serve as the head of the Economic Central Headquarters, which will include ministers from 16 economic ministries, the Blue House’s Chief Economic Secretary, and the Chief Secretary for Jobs. If necessary, members from the ruling party, the Bank of Korea, and private organizations will also be included.

The Economic Central Headquarters will focus on ▲ reviewing and evaluating the economic situation and risk factors ▲ checking the implementation of announced policies and field difficulties ▲ discussing and preparing additional government measures ▲ communicating the economic situation and government policies to the public. In particular, during April and May, it will concentrate on agendas such as employment and export measures, corporate support policies, and preparing the economic policy direction for the second half of the year.

First, under the Central Headquarters, response teams for finance, industry and enterprises, and employment will be formed, with the Chairman of the Financial Services Commission, the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Minister of Employment and Labor serving as heads of each response team respectively. These teams will monitor relevant indicators and field situations in real time with related ministries and report on implementation and additional measures at the Economic Central Headquarters meetings.

Separately from the three response teams, Kim Yongbeom, the First Vice Minister of Economy and Finance, will organize and operate a macroeconomic situation monitoring and practical support team. This support team will include officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (exports), the Financial Services Commission (finance), the Ministry of Employment and Labor (employment), and the National Finance Center among others. Their core tasks will be situation monitoring, reporting to the Central Headquarters, and practical support. Meetings will be held once a week on Thursdays, and besides government ministries, research institutes and private associations may also report trends and monitoring opinions as needed.

Issues and proposals gathered in this way will be shared with the next Economic Central Headquarters meeting for follow-up actions, and if necessary, incorporated into government measures and policy. For key measures or important matters, they will be submitted to the emergency economic meetings presided over by the President for decision-making.

Progress will be regularly briefed and explained directly by Vice Minister Kim Yongbeom, who will serve as the economic spokesperson. This operational plan will be reported as an agenda item at the 5th Crisis Management Countermeasures Meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Hong on the 23rd.

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