“Korean occupational safety and health” going global

KOSHA signed agreements with Myanmar and Indonesia and held discussions in Finland to prepare for an international congress

Feb. 8, 2014

KOSHA (headed by President Baek Hun-ki) has just started to strengthen global networks for occupational safety and health once again.

President Baek Hun-ki and other members of KOSHA visited Myanmar on Friday (Feb. 7) to strengthen OSH cooperation within the Asian region. President Baek signed the Memorandum of Understanding for Technical Cooperation with Deputy Minister U Htin Aung on Feb. 7 at 13:00 (Korea time) in Yangon, Myanmar.

The purpose of the MOU is to continuously develop KOSHA’s ongoing projects that support Myanmar.

KOSHA has carried out projects to support the occupational safety and health of Myanmar. Such projects include consulting services to provide the framework for the Occupational Safety and Health Act of Myanmar, and technical consultations for work environment monitoring at industrial sites.

With the newly signed MOU with KOSHA, the enactment of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of Myanmar will gain further momentum and Myanmar will continuously receive support regarding education and training, technical information, and exchanges among experts.

President Baek Hun-ki and other members of KOSHA also visited Indonesia on Wednesday (Feb. 5) to extend the Agreement for Technical Cooperation with Director General Muchtar Luthfie of the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration and to continue its OSH support for Myanmar for the next three years until 2017.

After signing the agreements, President Baek and other members of KOSHA will hold the 2nd Preparation Meeting for the International Congress on Occupational Health (ICOH) on Sunday (Feb. 9) in Helsinki, Finland. The meeting will be held to review the preparation process for the ICOH Seoul 2015 with experts from various countries such as the US and Italy.

ICOH is the biggest international congress in the occupational safety field that brings together global scholars and experts in various fields such as occupational medicine, hygiene, nursing, and ergonomics every three years to share information through various programs including presentations. The 31st ICOH will be held in May, 2015 at COEX, Seoul.

As the chair of the upcoming ICOH, KOSHA held the 1st Preparation Meeting with representatives from the International Commission on Occupational Health in last March in Seoul and established the basic framework for operating the ICOH 2015.

During the scheduled visit to Helsinki this time, KOSHA will hold a meeting with about 200 participants including the ICOH board members and other members to review the preparation process and to discuss details such as keynote speakers and the structure of the programs.

President Baek said, “KOSHA will draw on its experience and technology in the occupational health field to strengthen cooperation with developing countries in Asia and to raise the status of Korea and contribute to the development of Korea’s occupational safety and health by sharing academic and technical information with advanced countries at the international conference.