Cho Kyung-sik, Vice Minister of Science and ICT, Visits Communication Relay Agency for the Hearing and Speech Impaired

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] The Ministry of Science and ICT announced on the 7th that Vice Minister Kyung-sik Cho visited the Seoul Sign Language Relay Center on the 7th to encourage relay interpreters supporting COVID-19 sign language consultations and to inspect quarantine sites in preparation for COVID-19.

The Sign Language Relay Center has been supporting communication through sign language interpretation to enable people with hearing and speech disabilities to make phone calls since 2005. In particular, since March last year, it has been cooperating with the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency to support inquiries and consultations regarding COVID-19 quarantine guidelines for people with hearing and speech disabilities, and recently, it has also been providing guidance related to vaccination.

Vice Minister Cho Kyung-sik said, “Thanks to the hard work of the relay interpreters, people with hearing and speech disabilities have been able to respond appropriately to COVID-19. We will do our best to support safety measures such as quarantine so that the relay interpreters, who serve as the ears and mouth for people with hearing and speech disabilities, can work in a healthy and safe environment.”

Users can connect with relay interpreters by visiting the Sign Language Relay Center website or by making a video call to 107 without an area code, and can inquire or consult in sign language through the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency call center at 1339 or the Ministry of Health and Welfare call center at 129.