The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and South Korean government have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to partner on projects aimed at improving public health tools in the developing world and advancing vaccines and treatments for infectious diseases, the Associated Press reports.

In the MOU signed by Bill Gates and officials from South Korea’s foreign and health ministries, the partners pledged to advance Gates Foundation projects as well as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance. In a speech to lawmakers in South Korea’s National Assembly, Gates called for stronger international cooperation, including efforts to develop vaccines that would be effective for a broader range of coronaviruses and navigate what he described as a “crisis moment” in global health.

“There’s a lot we need to do together—we need to reach deep, we need to build more partnership, we need to encourage the scientists,” Gates said. “But I am confident that with these steps we can continue to radically improve global health, to cut the number of children dying in half again, to eradicate diseases like polio, measles and malaria, and improve the lives of all humans.” 

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Phynart studios)