Korea-Latin America Seek K-Quarantine Cooperation... 'Future Cooperation Forum' Held on 23-24

Direct Attendance of Ministerial-Level Officials from Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, and Colombia

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Health and Welfare will jointly host the ‘2020 Korea-Latin America Future Cooperation Forum,’ the first multilateral event held in person by overseas ministerial-level officials since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), over two days from the 23rd to the 24th at the Conrad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul.

The forum, held in a hybrid format combining in-person and virtual participation, will see ministerial-level officials from four countries?Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, and Colombia?visit Korea in person. Officials at the ministerial level from Uruguay, Chile, Brazil, and other countries will participate via video to present and discuss ‘Strengthening Korea-Latin America quarantine and health solidarity in the post-COVID-19 new normal era.’

On the Korean side, government, international organizations, and private experts from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, Pan-Government New Drug Development Project Group, Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), International Vaccine Institute, and Korea Pasteur Institute will attend.

On the first day of the forum, the 23rd, the ‘Korea-Latin America High-Level Forum’ will include an opening address by Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, a welcome speech by Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo, and congratulatory remarks by Luis Gallegos, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ecuador. The first session will focus on ‘Building Korea-Latin America solidarity for infectious disease response in the new normal era,’ and the second session will address ‘Establishing international cooperation partnerships for infectious disease treatment and prevention’ through presentations and discussions.

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha will emphasize the importance of solidarity and cooperation in the health and quarantine sectors between Korea and Latin America in her opening remarks, while presenting a strategic future cooperation vision between Korea and Latin America to prepare for the post-COVID-19 new normal era. Additionally, Minister of Health and Welfare Park Neung-hoo will introduce Korea’s COVID-19 quarantine and response strategies in his welcome speech and convey a message of expectation for active cooperation to end COVID-19 based on past health and medical exchanges between Korea and Latin America.

On the second day of the forum, the 24th, starting with a welcome speech by Hwang Kyung-tae, Director General for Latin America at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the first session will be an ‘Expert Forum’ on the theme of ‘Exploring Korea-Latin America health and medical cooperation strategies in the new normal era.’ The second session will be a ‘Youth Advancement Forum’ exploring opportunities for Korean youth to enter Latin America in fields such as health and medicine, construction and infrastructure, and culture and content in the post-COVID-19 era.

An official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs evaluated, “This forum will serve as an opportunity to reinforce the win-win partnership between Korea and Latin America amid the global health crisis by discussing ways to strengthen solidarity and cooperation in the health and quarantine sectors for infectious disease response between Korea and Latin America, and by promoting cooperation in pharmaceutical and digital health care sectors to prepare for the post-COVID-19 new normal era.”

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