Anchor: South Korea has decided to extend its strict social distancing campaign for two more weeks alongside its self-isolation restriction for international travelers to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak. As the pandemic surges around the globe, the World Health organization says it's not the time to ease quarantine efforts despite rising concerns of an economic crisis.
Kim Bum-soo has more.
Report: The World Health Organization is warning against lifting quarantine restrictions against the novel coronavirus outbreak.
[Sound bite: WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (English)]
"If countries rush to lift restrictions too quickly, the virus could re-surge and the economic impact could be even more severe and prolonged. Financing the health response is therefore an essential investment not just in saving lives, but in the longer-term social and economic recovery."
During Friday's COVID-19 briefing in Geneva, WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus addressed the dilemma between lives and livelihoods amid the unprecedented pandemic outbreak.
[Sound bite: WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (English)]
"... ultimately, the best way for countries to end restrictions and ease their economic effects is to attack the virus, with the aggressive and comprehensive package of measures that we have spoken about many times before: find, test, isolate and treat every case, and trace every contact."
After initially emerging in Wuhan, China some three months ago, more than one million-99-thousand COVID-19 cases have been confirmed worldwide. As of Saturday afternoon (Korea standard time), at least 58-thousand-nine-hundred deaths have been reported, according to Johns Hopkins University’s Coronavirus Resource Center.
The outbreak then hit economies as cities shut down and people lost jobs.
Speaking at the WHO media briefing, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said that the world has never seen such a growing demand for emergency financing.
[Sound bite: International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva (English)]
"This is a crisis like no other. Never in the history of the IMF, we have witnessed the world economy coming to a standstill. We are now in recession. It is way worse than the global financial crisis. And it is a crisis that requires all of us to come together."
While the WHO is calling for strict quarantine and social distancing measures, the IMF is collaborating with the World Bank and other international financial authorities to mobilize emergency financing assistance.
The IMF chief urged countries to prioritize health expenditures, using money to pay doctors and nurses and make sure hospitals function.
Kim Bum-soo, KBS World Radio News.