Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun admitted on Wednesday that the government could have been better prepared for COVID-19 cluster infections. 

Chung made the remark during the National Assembly's Special Committee on Budget and Accounts meeting, while responding to questions about a surge of infections linked to a call center in southwestern Seoul. The call center, located in the Guro District, has emerged as a possible mass incubator of the contagious disease in the capital region.

At least 90 call center employees and their family members have been diagnosed with the virus. 

Chung vowed more state efforts to prevent cluster infections, promising the government will do more to thoroughly manage high-density workplaces.

The prime minister also expressed regret as he explained that even before the call center case, government officials had discussed proactive response measures following the mass infections in Daegu stemming from the Shincheonji religious sect. 

Regarding a growing number of countries placing entry bans or tougher entry procedures on South Koreans, Chung said the government was trying to contact those countries and brief them on Seoul’s active counter-virus efforts to ease their concerns. 

Chung said such efforts by government officials, including President Moon Jae-in and Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, are producing outcomes and leading some countries to mitigate their entry restrictions.