Two Koreas agree to jointly combat malaria, TB
South and North Korea on Wednesday agreed to jointly establish measures to combat infectious diseases, including tuberculosis and malaria, during an inter-Korean meeting of the two countries’ high-ranking health officials held in the North’s border town of Kaesong.
The agreement was reached after Kwon Deok-cheol, South
Korea’s vice health minister, and his North Korean
counterpart, Park Myong-su, discussed ways to expand cooperation
on health care policies at the joint liaison office in
Kaesong.
“South and North Korea have
agreed to launch a demonstration project this year, where (the
two counties) will be sharing information on infectious
diseases,” the joint statement said.
“We have agreed to come up with necessary plans, on things
such as cooperation on technology and establishing a joint
infectious disease control scheme.”
The two
Koreas also agreed to collaborate on diagnosis, prevention and
treatment of infectious diseases in both countries, including TB
and malaria.
It has been reported that North
Koreans are susceptible to a wide range of infectious diseases
that have mostly been eradicated in developed
countries.
“North and South Koreas are
actually very close in distance, and virus-carrying insects and
mosquitos can always spread (across the border),” said
Kwon.
Park agreed that, from an epidemiological
perspective, the two Koreas are so close that an outbreak in one
country could affect the other.
Wednesday’s
meeting in Kaesong was the first inter-Korean discussion on
health care policies in 11 years. Seoul and Pyongyang last held
similar talks in 2007.
According to the World Health
Organization, North Korea spent less on health care per capita
than any other country in 2009 -- under $1.
Citing
witnesses who dispute the communist state’s claims to
provide health care for all, Amnesty International says North
Koreans have had to pay for medical services since the 1990s,
with the doctors “usually paid in cigarettes, alcohol or
food for most basic consults, and taking cash for tests or
surgery.”
The international NGO also says many
North Koreans “bypass doctors altogether, going straight
to the markets to buy medicine, self-medicating according to
their guesswork” because the state has “failed to
offer the most basic health needs.”
In
June, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria
suspended grants to combat TB and malaria in North Korea for
unclear reasons.
Seoul and Pyongyang have been
holding a number of meetings on prospective inter-Korean
projects and cooperation, including those involving railway
connections, reforestation and health care, with the goal of
easing tensions between the two countries.
Source:
The Korea Herald
