An nyung ha sip nikka,
Ba Gap sep ni da,
Excellencies,
Vice Minister Mr Hyung-hoon Lee,
Distinguished colleagues from the Ministry of Health and Welfare,
Philanthropic and private-sector leaders,
Dear colleagues and friends,
It is a great pleasure to welcome you to this Partnership Forum.
I thank all of you for your commitment to global health and your support for WHO.
Korea’s transformation is one of the most remarkable development stories of our time.
Investment in people, science and institutions has made this country a global leader in technology and innovation, and an increasingly important contributor to global health.
Koreans have also made lasting contributions to international cooperation, including Dr Jong-wook Lee as WHO Director-General and Ban Ki-moon as United Nations Secretary-General.
We now have an opportunity to build on that legacy.
The WHO Country Cooperation Strategy for the Republic of Korea for 2026 to 2030 identifies digital health, health security and climate resilience as priorities, while creating opportunities to share Korean experience with countries around the world.
That partnership is already producing results.
Through the Global Training Hub for Biomanufacturing, Korean expertise is helping countries strengthen local capacity and bring production closer to where it is needed.
The Hub has already trained more than 4000 people from 100 countries. I think you have to be proud.
Today’s programme points to several areas where we can go further.
First, AI and digital health.
Korea’s innovators are developing tools that can expand access, improve diagnosis and support chronic disease management.
WHO can help turn those advances into public-health impact through evidence, standards, regulatory guidance and our global network of Member States.
Second, climate and health.
The WHO Asia-Pacific Centre for Environment and Health here in Seoul gives us a platform for translating research into practical action across the region.
Third, the health workforce and biohealth.
Korea’s experience in training health workers, developing vaccines and strengthening manufacturing can help countries build more resilient and self-reliant health systems.
Philanthropy has a particular role in each of these areas.
It can take risks that public institutions cannot, support promising ideas before they are ready for scale, and provide catalytic capital that attracts larger investment.
The Health Impact Investment Platform is one example.
It uses catalytic philanthropic capital to mobilise financing from multilateral development banks for high-impact investments at country level.
This Forum should not end with a list of interesting presentations.
It should begin sustained cooperation, with clear priorities, complementary roles and measurable results.
My hope is that government, WHO, philanthropy, science and the private sector will leave this room with new partners and practical next steps.
Together, we can turn Korea’s strengths into better health for people far beyond Korea’s borders.
Kam-sa-ham-nida.