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MOHW Emphasizes International Cooperation for Peace and Health at the WHO 75th World Health Assembly
 
PRESS RELEASE
May 25, 2022
 
 
The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced that a Korean delegation led by chief representative Director General Yoon Chan Sik for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Health and Welfare and consisting of members from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, and Ministry of Food and Drug Safety attended the 75th World Health Assembly (WHA), hosted by the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland from 21st May (Sunday) to 28th May (Saturday).
 
The World Health Assembly, the highest decision-making body of the World Health Organization, is hosted every May and features participation by its 194 member states, international organizations, and NGOs.
 
 
This year’s World Health Assembly is the first onsite meeting held in 3 years, after virtual conferences were held in 2020 and 2021 due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Korean delegation was also present at this year’s WHA in person in Geneva, Switzerland.
 
The Assembly commenced with the High-level Welcome on the afternoon of 21st May (Sunday). Leaders from 6 nations, including Swiss Federal Councillor Alain Berset and President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, as well as Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of the United Nations took to the stage for remarks, followed by the opening speech from WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
 
Director-General Dr. Tedros highlighted that looking back over the past 2 years, COVID-19 is not over anywhere unless it is over everywhere and that we can only succeed when we overcome our conflicts and differences together.
 
He also pointed out that despite the achievement of vaccinating 60% of the global population, there is a higher risk of outbreaks of new variants among those not vaccinated from recent surges, stagnant vaccination rates due to misinformation, and the remaining challenges in gaining access to testing and treatment.
 
He then urged all countries to make every effort to deliver a 70% vaccination rate, and to prioritize vaccinations for healthcare workers and high-risk groups. Moreover, he stressed that peace is the most important solution, when considering the impact recent wars and conflicts have on global health.
 
Following the welcoming session, the chief representatives of the member states took to the stage to make keynote speeches on this year’s theme of ‘Peace for Health, Health for Peace.’ Director General for International Cooperation Yoon spoke as the chief representative of Korea.
 
 
First, Director General for International Cooperation Yoon expressed deep concerns about the loss of life, violations of human rights, and the destruction of the healthcare system in Ukraine while calling for a swift and peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflicts.
 
He continued to point out that conflicts around the globe are violating human rights, disrupting supply chains, and restricting access to essential medical services, despite the fundamental and universal values and human right to peace and health, and expressed his strong support for the ‘Peace for Health, Health for Peace’ initiative.
 
He also noted that humanitarian aid from the international community is necessary in North Korea due to the recent spread of COVID-19. He stated that South Korea is willing to supply essential medical supplies, including vaccines, treatments, and medical equipment, if North Korea intended to accept such offers, and is expecting a response from the North.
 
※ Meanwhile, North Korea explained their efforts in the fight against COVID-19 during the keynote speech but did not mention or respond to any potential external aid by the international community.
 
Director General Yoon went on to mention Korea’s active participation in the efforts of the international community to end COVID-19 and Korean government’s announcement during the Second Global COVID-19 Summit (12th May) to make an additional contribution of USD 300 million to ACT-A* starting from next year.
 
 * Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator is a global collaborative effort, led by the WHO, to accelerate the development, production, and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, diagnostic devices, and treatments.

Moreover, he explained that Korea is committed to enhancing the capacities of the low-to-middle-income nations in vaccines and biomedicine as a ‘Global Bio-manufacturing Workforce Training Hub’ under the WHO. During 25th and 26th of October this year, Korea will be co-hosting the ‘World Bio Summit’ in Seoul together with the WHO, which will present a vision for the international community regarding preparation against future pandemic outbreaks.
 
 
Lastly, Director General Yoon expressed Korea’s intent to actively take part in the conversations of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB), which was formed this February to establish new rules and guidelines on preparations for and responses against future pandemics, such as the Pandemic Treaty.
 
The election for the new Director-General of the WHO took place on the afternoon of 24th May (Tuesday), where the current Director-General Dr. Tedros was reappointed for another term.
 
Director-General Dr. Tedros fwas nominated as the sole candidate by the Executive Board last January and the World Health Assembly passed a resolution for his re-appointment as the Director-General by the vote of the 194 member states.
 
Director-General Dr. Tedros was first appointed in 2017 and his second 5-year-term will start as of 16th Aug.
 
Director General for International Cooperation Yoon congratulated him on his second term in office right after the election and expressed Korea’s wish to continue the journey of becoming special partners with the WHO, to which Director-General Dr. Tedros replied ‘감사합니다[Gamsahabnida]’, which means “thank you” in Korean.
 
During the conference, the Korean delegation met with the key members of the WHO, along with the delegations of countries attending the World Health Assembly, to expand the base for cooperation.
 
First, Director General for International Cooperation Yoon held talks with Chief Medical Officer Mitchell Wolfe of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on 23rd May (Monday), discussing ideas on how to promote cooperation between the US CDC and the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Disease Control and Prevention Agency of Korea, including personnel exchanges between the two nations.
 
Chief Medical Officer Wolfe mentioned that he was “very impressed with the healthcare and disease control system of Korea as seen during the last visit to Korea in mid-May and that Korea shows a strong willingness to take part in the larger framework for international cooperation” while stressing the importance of mutual benefits in the cooperation between the two nations. He also revealed a “plan to allocate CDC resources to the US embassy in Korea within the current year.”
 
Director General for International Cooperation Yoon replied by welcoming the allocation of US CDC personnel to Korea and expressed his hope that this will continue and develop into cooperation in global health and security as stated in the joint declaration agreed upon at the recent Korea-US Summit (on 21st May).
 
For the remainder of the Assembly, Director General Yoon plans to hold talks with members of the WHO, including Jane Ellison, Executive Director for External Relations and Governance, Michael Ryan, Executive Director of the Health Emergencies Programme, Maria Van Kerkhove, Unit Head for the Emerging Disease and Zoonoses Unit (Technical Lead for the COVID-19 Response), and Anshu Banerjee, Director for the Department of Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health and Ageing, as well as health ministry representatives from the UK, Australia, and Mongolia.
 
The World Health Assembly is scheduled to continue until 28th May (Saturday) and feature ongoing discussions among the member states, during which the Korean delegation will actively present Korea’s on each of the agenda topics.
 
Regarding the implementation plan for prevention and management of non-infectious diseases, the Korean government plans to emphasize the necessity of applying an integrated approach for the recovery from COVID-19, especially an enhanced multi-sectoral approach that considers the social determinants of health.
 
In addition, the experiences and case studies of Korea will be shared when it comes to recommendations and implementation plans for various topics, such as oral health, prevention and management of obesity, tobacco control, epilepsy, and alcohol consumption.
 
 
In relation to the health and medical workers action plan (2022-2030), the delegation will point out the need to draft national-level mid-to-long-term roadmaps, based on the status surveys of health and medical workers.

At the same time, Korean examples on enhanced protective measures and support provided for health and medical workers during the fight against COVID-19 will be shared relating to the topics of health, safety, and protection of human rights of health and medical workers.
 
The delegation will also highlight that the WHO discussion on the standardized nomenclature of medical devices will be a reference in establishing nomenclature systems in countries that do not yet have a firm regulatory framework on medical devices and that continued discussion is required on the feasibility of such standardization in the future.
 
When it comes to the global issue of drug abuse, the delegation plans to share Korea’s ongoing revisions in local laws, regulations, and policies based on scientific facts, which aim to guarantee the use of narcotics for medical or research purposes yet block their use for any other purposes.
 
Furthermore, the delegation will express Korea’s support for initiatives proposed by the WHO following the ‘150th Session of the Executive Board’ meetings in January, including the △ Global health strategic resolution on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and viral hepatitis, △ Global strategy report on research and innovation for tuberculosis, △ Global report on ‘Vaccination Agenda 2030’, and the △Strategic action plan for polio transition (20182023). The delegation will express our strong commitment to support the WHO in its efforts to continuously respond to future infectious disease outbreaks that may follow COVID-19.
 
 
In particular, the delegation welcomes the expansion of the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS*) operated by the WHO and expresses its desire to continuously cooperate in enhanced monitoring and responses to other respiratory infections.
 
Director General Yoon Chan Sik for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Health and Welfare commented, “during the World Health Assembly, we have reaffirmed the strong will and commitment of the member states in strengthening their capacities by reforming the governance of the World Health Organization and improving the sustainability of financial resources to end the COVID-19 pandemic and to prepare against any future infectious diseases.”
 
He went on to say that “we will further build on the close cooperation between Korea and the WHO, which plays the most pivotal role in global health and security,” and through this “we will be fully engaged, as a WHO BioHub nation, to contribute to the critical task of the international community, which is to ensure equitable access to vaccines.”
 
 
// For inquiries, contact Media Relations, Ministry of Health and Welfare 0442022047 or fairytale@korea.kr
 
 
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