KEI Podcasts

We are amidst a pandemic – its victims will not only be the sick but also those who will lose their livelihood as the economy shuts down to contain the further spread of the disease. A body of research, including those published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, notes that after old age and pre-existing health conditions, low socioeconomic status acts as the top variable that could determine your susceptibility to epidemics. In the context of COVID-19, available data suggest that COVID-19 can be about twice as deadly for those in society’s lower rungs.

At this critical moment, governments around the world are struggling to find ways to ensure both economic security and safety.

Our guests today, KEI Senior Director Troy Stangarone and Director Kyle Ferrier, are tracking how South Korea is confronting this challenge. For policymakers and leaders of corporations in the United States, Seoul’s economic response – alongside those of European states – are sure to have some relevant policy lessons for their own response.

You can find Troy and Kyle’s recent articles on South Korea’s response to the economic fallout of the pandemic here:

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2020/03/738_286766.html

https://thediplomat.com/2020/03/south-korea-braces-for-global-recession/

https://thediplomat.com/2020/02/coronavirus-now-poised-for-outsized-impact-in-south-korea/

http://blog.keia.org/2020/03/south-korea-covid-19-financial-crisis-part-2-tools-cooperation/

Please also consider watching our recent event video on the state of human rights in North Korea. Ambassador Robert King and Committee for Human Rights in North Korea executive director Greg Scarlatoiu note how human rights violations in the country – like mass detention and information repression – will compromise public health in the face of COVID-19.

You can find the event video here: