1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Korean Council on Latin America & the Caribbean co-hosted a video conference with the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) on July 1.

o The video conference, which began with opening remarks by President of the Korean Council on Latin America & the Caribbean Shin Soong-chull and Deputy Executive Secretary of ECLAC Raúl García-Buchaca, brought together officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Economy and Finance, a professor of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, and the heads of the Economic Development Division and the Social Development Division of ECLAC, who attended as speakers, as well as about 500 people from governments and academia in Latin America and the Caribbean, who took part in the conference online.

2. During the video conference, the participants explored the social and economic impacts of COVID-19 and prospects, as well as the implications of the ROK and Latin America’s policy responses to COVID-19, and discussed ways to facilitate economic cooperation between the two sides post COVID-19.

o To increase cooperation between the ROK and Latin America post COVID-19, the participants discussed ways to step up health and medical cooperation based on joint efforts to tackle COVID-19, increase cooperation in e-government and science and technology (ICT) with non face-to-face interaction becoming routine, and explore new opportunities for cooperation in expanding social infrastructure.

3. ECLAC is a UN regional commission established in 1948 to promote economic and social development in Latin America. Since joining ECLAC in 2007 as a full member, the ROK, along with ECLAC, has explored ways to work together in Latin America, including through joint research, exchange of experts, and seminars.

o Currently, ECLAC is actively functioning as the biggest think tank in Latin America even amid the COVID-19 pandemic by operating “COVID-19 Observatory” to track the public policies that the 33 countries of the Latin America and Caribbean region are implementing in response to the COVID-19 and offer analyses of their impacts.

4. The video conference holds significance in that even amid the COVID-19 situation, the ROK sought ways to turn the COVID-19 crisis into an opportunity and reinforce cooperation through close communication with Latin America’s regional organization. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to expand cooperation with key regional organizations in Latin America in responding to COVID-19.