Lim Seung-kwan, the new commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA), emphasized the agency's role as a public health crisis control tower and vowed to promote localizing mRNA platforms and create a safe medical environment.

“KDCA will continue to emphasize tasks that can protect the health and safety of the public with the vision of ‘Healthy People, Safe Society,’” Lim said in his inaugural speech on Monday.

Lim said he would enhance national health security capabilities by making KDCA a control tower for public health crises, including infectious disease disasters. "I will actively support the mRNA vaccine development project that started this year to localize the mRNA platform, which is the key to responding to the next pandemic," he said.

In addition, the agency will establish a health impact monitoring and research system for climate disasters, such as heat waves and heavy rains, and promote community-centered projects to prevent senility to improve public health in the ultra-elderly society, Lim said.

"We will also strengthen international cooperation based on the excellent health security practices that KDCA has accumulated during the Covid-19 response," Lim said. Based on its diagnostic testing capabilities, integrated epidemic prevention information system, big data platform, and emergency room for rapid initial response, "We will strengthen international cooperation and collaboration to contribute to enhancing global public health capabilities,” he added.

The KDCA will also actively promote prevention and management of vulnerable populations to combat tuberculosis, malaria, and HIV in Korea, and create a safe medical environment by managing healthcare-associated infections and antibiotic resistance, Lim emphasized

"I am honored to be entrusted with the enormous responsibility of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, and I feel the weight of responsibility," Lim said. "Despite the challenges we face, such as low interest in infectious diseases after the Covid-19 pandemic and unstable international trends, we will preemptively respond to crises based on public trust and create a healthy society in everyday life."