A tourist from Europe undergoes a COVID-19 test at a temporary walk-through test center outside Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on March 31, 2020. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, April 6 (Korea Bizwire) — While a growing number of countries are requesting imports of medical products such as novel coronavirus test kits from South Korea, there have also been calls for cooperation in software technology.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore recently asked for technical cooperation regarding a quarantine protection application used for special entry procedures implemented by South Korea.
U.S. local governments and hospitals have also asked to introduce the system. In addition, Myanmar’s government also expressed its desire for cooperation in related technologies.
A senior ministry official told reporters that there had been a number of requests from countries for cooperation in utilizing the application, adding, “Countries are seeking assistance for software collaboration.”
Since last month, such calls have been rising as South Korea has recently been garnering global recognition for its diagnostic capabilities and quarantine efforts, but there is increasing demand for software support.
U.S. President Donald Trump voiced hope that South Korea could provide test kits and other quarantine-related goods as much as possible, praising South Korea for its exemplary diagnostic capabilities and quarantine efforts.
This photo taken on April 2, 2020, shows a health worker checking visitors at St. Mary’s Hospital in Uijeongbu, north of Seoul, where group infection of the new coronavirus has been reported. (Yonhap)
On Friday, a vice minister-level video conference with Germany was held with the aim of sharing Korea’s COVID-19 related experiences.
Prior to the meeting, the German government sent a series of questions and questionnaires to South Korea.
It was reported that the questionnaires covered all areas, including diagnostic tests, quarantine management, IT support apps, social distancing, and immigration control.
“While Germany is successfully managing the virus, German officials expressed interest in various experiences of South Korea as the number of confirmed people is on the rise,” said the official.
“Since Germany is the chair country of the European Union in the second half of this year, Germany seems willing to learn from Korea’s experience with the whole of Europe in mind.”
The quarantine model of South Korea, which initially saw a steeper rise in confirmed cases than any other country with the exception of China, is now recognized as a model for successfully preventing the virus from spreading.
There are number of calls from countries for cooperation to refer to local quarantine measures.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) dispatched personnel to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) early last month to look at the Korean situation and experience.
At that time, U.S. CDC officials inspected and collaborated on several sites with the KCDC.
“The best practices in the last three weeks shared by Korea have been very useful,” the CDC said. “We cannot apply all of Korea’s systems to the U.S., but there are parts that will help establish systems in the U.S.”
D. M. Park (dmpark@koreabizwire.com)
