DPRK takes strict steps to combat virus

PYONGYANG－The Ministry of Public Health of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is taking strict measures on switching the state epidemic prevention work to the maximum emergency system, the Korean Central News Agency, or KCNA, reported on Saturday.

The ministry held an urgent consultative meeting and scrupulously organized the work for curbing and controlling the spread of the epidemic in the country and curing those with fever as soon as possible so as to eliminate the source of the spread at an early date, the agency said.

The meeting discussed the issues of detecting, examining and treating those with fever on a scientific basis as well as supplying necessary medicines, it said.

As the whole country is locked down, the ministry has dispatched officials to the capital, Pyongyang, and the provinces to take timely measures to solve problems in supplying medicines and other treatment, it said.

Pharmacies have been newly installed in relevant regions, and anyone with a fever is being given prescription medical supplies, the report said.

The ministry has also mobilized all public health medical officials as well as teachers, postgraduate students and students at medical universities in the country to find anyone with fever and treat them immediately, it said.

The fevered people in the country have surpassed 820,620, of whom 496,030 have recovered and 324,550 are being treated, the KCNA reported on Sunday.

From late Friday to late Saturday, more than 296,180 people across the country were reported to have a fever, and more than 252,400 were said to have recovered. Forty-two people had died, the KCNA said, citing the state emergency epidemic prevention headquarters.

The United Nations is ready to help the DPRK deal with any COVID-19 outbreak, a UN official said on Friday.

"The UN remains engaged, and we stand ready, along with our humanitarian partners, to assist the people in need in the DPRK on COVID-19 and other issues, as people's vulnerability has likely increased since the pandemic outbreak and the border closures in 2020," said Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"At this stage we are monitoring with concern the reports of COVID-19 outbreak in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. We've yet to receive formal communications on the outbreak. But we are staying in contact with the representatives of the DPRK on this."

On Thursday the DPRK confirmed its first COVID-19 case in the country since the outbreak of the pandemic more than two years ago.

Xinhua