COVID-19 has become a widespread global challenge impacting all aspects of life. As one of the first countries to have been impacted by the outbreak, the Republic of Korea countered the crisis with a variety of rapid and innovative responses by adopting a whole-of-government approach to prevent and contain the pandemic with the principle of “openness, transparency and democratic process.”

The UNDP Seoul Policy Centre (USPC) has collated a summary of some of the policies and practices that have been implemented by the Korean government, public institutions, the private sector and other partners in response to COVID-19 in the country. We hope that this compilation, based on information collected from the government, media and other sources, may serve as valuable references to policymakers and practitioners of a growing number of countries who are building their own solutions to fight the COVID-19 challenge.

USPC supports knowledge exchange on key development challenges based on Korea’s experiences. USPC does not work with the Korean government and its partners on developing and implementing these policies and practices in the country, but we highlight them here in order to assist governments and others in their efforts to tackle the disease.

Below are some examples illustrating the experiences and lessons learned observed thus far in Korea. The growing list of COVID-19 related practices and policies can be viewed under the following rubrics:

• Drive-through virus testing
• Public information disclosure
• Compulsory self-quarantine monitoring
• Safeguarding economic resilience
• Private sector responses
• Stabilization of Mask Supply and Distribution
• Simplification of Administrative Procedures in Affected Industries
• Relief and Support Measures
• Medical and parcel delivery waste management
• Online classes
• Role of police, local government and anti-corruption agency
• Korean New Deal for the post-COVID-19 era
• International development cooperation
• References & additional information

[Updated: 10 September 2020]