보건복지부 영문홈페이지

The ROK to Expand Healthcare Cooperation with Turkmenistan, Paraguay, and Mongolia

- Bilateral meetings held during Medical Korea 2024,

along with the signing of a Paraguay-ROK MOU for the healthcare sector -

On March 14 and 15, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW, Minister Cho, KyooHong) held bilateral meetings with delegations from Turkmenistan, Paraguay, and Mongolia at their request, who visited the Republic of Korea (ROK) to attend Medical Korea 2024 and discuss cooperation with the ROK in the healthcare sector.

On March 14 (Thursday), Kim Hye-jin, the Deputy Minister for Planning and Coordination of the MOHW, met with Vice Minister Azat Ovezov of the Ministry of Health and Medical Industry of Turkmenistan at Grand InterContinental Seoul Parnas. The two sides discussed ways to strengthen cooperation between the two countries, and shared opinions on issues of mutual interest in the sector, including cooperation in traditional medicine (Korean medicine), training programs for healthcare professionals, and academic exchanges.

* Turkmenistan healthcare professionals completed online Medical Korea Academy training programs (2 in 2020, 1 in 2021, and 7 in 2023)

Subsequently, on March 15 (Friday), Deputy Minister Kim had a meeting with Minister Maria Teresa Baran Wasilchuk of the Paraguay Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare at The Westin Chosun Seoul. At the meeting, the Deputy Minister said, “I hope that the Paraguay-ROK Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the healthcare sector signed during this visit will pave the way for systematic cooperation between the two countries.”

* (Areas of Cooperation) universal coverage, prevention of infectious diseases, and healthcare industries including medical devices

Minister Wasilchuk responded by extending her gratitude for inviting them to Medical Korea and saying, “I hope that our healthcare cooperation with the ROK will grow stronger moving forward.”

It was followed by a meeting with Mongolian Minister of Health Chinzorig Sodnom, in which Deputy Minister Kim recounted the outcomes of continued cooperation between the ROK and Mongolia, such as training of Mongolian healthcare professionals* and hosting Mongolian patients,** and said, “I hope that the productive cooperation between two countries will continue in the future so that more Mongolians can benefit from the ROK’s outstanding healthcare services.”

* 168 professionals completed online Medical Korea Academy programs (2020-2023, the largest among the participant countries), and 59 completed the Lee Jong-wook Fellowship Program (2007-2023)

** The ROK hosted 14,148 patients from Mongolia in 2022, who accounted for 5.7% of all foreign patients in the year (ranked 6th).

In response, Minister Sodnom said, “I would like to express my gratitude to the ROK government for its unsparing support in enhancing Mongolia’s healthcare capacity and improving and developing the healthcare system, and I hope that the two countries will strengthen bilateral cooperation in areas such as attracting patients and expanding medical services.”

Deputy Minister Kim Hye-jin said, “The Medical Korea conference and the bilateral meetings allowed us to spread awareness of the ROK’s outstanding medical technologies and products. I hope these outcomes will serve as a foothold for further cooperation and exchanges with the respective countries in medical services,” and added, “Bio Korea 2024 scheduled this May will present good opportunities to share the latest issues and cutting-edge technologies in the digital and biohealth industry while promoting international exchanges and investments. I look forward to each country’s interest and participation in the event as well.” ///