S. Korea to launch COVID-19 vaccine development task force

SEOUL, April 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will set a special government-civilian team in motion this week to support the development of a new coronavirus vaccine and treatment, Cheong Wa Dae announced Sunday.

It's designed to help facilitate the work via a comprehensive review of relevant situations and a swift decision-making process, according to Cheong Wa Dae's deputy spokesman Yoon Jae-kwan.

It will involve top-level officials from the health, science, finance, commerce and startup ministries, as well as the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety and Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC). Also joining the task force are civilian experts.

The move comes after President Moon Jae-in called for "pan-governmental" support for the development of COVID-19 medicine and vaccines during his visit last week to Institute Pasteur Korea, a research center specializing in infectious diseases, located in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province.

lcd@yna.co.kr
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