보건복지부 영문홈페이지

International Health Cooperation

Discussed at the World Bio Summit

- 2nd Vice Minister Park Minsoo Holds Bilateral Meetings with Lao Health Minister,

WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific, and Unitaid Executive Director -

On Monday, November 11, 2nd Vice Minister of Health and Welfare Park Minsoo met with Lao Minister of Health Dr. Bounfeng Phoummalaysith and Dr. Saia Ma'u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific (WPRO*), at Songdo ConvensiA in Incheon. On Tuesday, November 12, he held discussions with Unitaid Executive Director Dr. Philippe Duneton to address key issues and explore collaborative measures in the health sector.

* WPRO, World Health Organization(WHO) Regional Office for the Western Pacific

These bilateral meetings were arranged at the request of high-level representatives visiting Korea for the World Bio Summit 2024.

On the first day, Vice Minister Park met with Lao Minister of Health Dr. Bounfeng Phoummalaysith. During their meeting, Vice Minister Park commended Laos for successfully hosting ASEAN meetings, including the summit, as this year’s ASEAN chair. He proposed strengthening exchanges and cooperation between the two countries to progressively enhance healthcare system of Laos and promote mutually beneficial development.

Following this, Vice Minister Park met with Dr. Saia Ma'u Piukala, WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific, and congratulated him on his recent appointment. Park expressed Korea’s commitment to actively participate as an executive board member for the Western Pacific to support the successful implementation of the new five-year health strategy (2024–2028). They also agreed to continue efforts to promote the active participation of Korean professionals within the WHO.

On the second day, Vice Minister Park held discussions with Dr. Philippe Duneton, Executive Director of Unitaid, to exchange views on the importance of international organizations’ cooperation and networks in strengthening public-private partnerships, fostering technological innovation, and advancing commercialization in the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors. He emphasized the need for continued collaboration to accelerate the entry of Korea's excellent and innovative pharmaceutical and biotech products into the global public procurement market. ///