Seoul’s best policy voted by foreign residents : Drive-Thru & Walk-Thru COVID-19 Testing Stations

• http://english.seoul.go.kr/seouls-best-policy-voted-by-foreign-residents-drive-thru-walk-thru-covid-19-testing-stations/?keyword=policy&cat=46
   

  • The poll was conducted online at the city government’s official website in six languages for ten days from November 30 to December 9
  • “Drive-thru and walk-thru testing stations,” which have been praised globally for their unique test method and speedy procedure, ranked the first place1 as Seoul’s best policy in the COVID-19 era
  • The city’s foreigner support policies (COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents”) and its facilities’ preventive measures (COVID-19 Clean Zone Certification and response measure on public transportation)

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  SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, December 18, 2020 — According to a recent poll on foreign residents, the “drive-thru and walk-thru testing stations” ranked first place as Seoul’s best policy in the COVID-19 era. The respondents pick the drive/walk-thru testing facilities as one of the most impressive pandemic response measures by the central government and the Seoul Metropolitan government.

  The “drive-thru and walking-thru testing stations,” which topped the list as Korea’s response measure against COVID-19, have been praised globally for their unique test method and speedy procedure. The “drive-thru testing stations” were selected as the New Work Item Proposal (NP) by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in August 2020.

  The “COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents” providing eight language services took the second place. It helps foreign residents in Seoul have better access to information about the pandemic. The “COVID-19 Clean Zone Certification” ranked third place. It ensures a comprehensive response system so that citizens feel safe using facilities. The number of votes for the top three policies were 4,137(14.2%), 3,417(11.8%), and 2,960(10.2%), respectively.

  The poll was conducted online at the city government’s official website in six languages for ten days, from November 30 to December 9. A total of 9,681 foreign residents participated in the online poll. (Each participant can vote for up to three policies, so the total number of votes amounts to 29,040.) 80 percent of the voters come from English-speaking countries, showing the highest participation rate among the foreign voters.

  In the poll this year, the city’s COVID-19 related policy was categorized into three areas, including “health & safety,” “culture & smart,” “support for foreigners.” According to these three sections, 15 best-performing policies were shortlisted based on view counts and other criteria. The participants cast the votes for three preferred policies among the 15 candidates.
  ※ Participation rate of six language groups: English (80.5%), Simplified Chinese (3.5%), Traditional Chinese (14.8%), Japanese (1.1%), Spanish (0.04%), and French (0.07%)

  The “drive-thru and walk-thru testing stations” showed the most significant popularity throughout the entire language groups. In contrast, the Chinese group (China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, etc.) put the “implementation of the response measure on public transportation” in a top rank. The Japanese group included the “compulsory wear-a-mask campaign” in the ranking. The Spanish and French groups showed a lot of interest in the “social distancing campaign.”

  ※ SMG’s best policies in the top ranking by each language group

  SMG’s best policies in the top ranking by each language group

  Language	Rank	Policy	Voting Rate
  English	1	Drive-thru/Walk-thru Test Stations	14.2%
  	2	COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents	11.2%
  	3	COVID-19 Clean Zone Certification	10.7%
  Simplified Chinese (China)	1	Drive-thru/Walk-thru Test Stations	17.4%
  	2	COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents	13.8%
  	3	SMG’s Responsive Measures on Public Transportation	12.6%
  Traditional Chinese (Hong Kong, Taiwan, and etc.)	1	COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents	14.0%
  	2	Drive-thru/Walk-thru Test Stations	13.7%
  	3	SMG’s Responsive Measures on Public Transportation	9.8%
  Japanese	1	Drive-thru/Walk-thru Test Stations	19.0%
  	2	COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents	14.7%
  	3	Compulsory Wear-A-Mask Campaign	9.2%
  Spanish	1	Social Distancing Campaign	25.0%
  	1	COVID-19 Monitoring Call System	25.0%
  	3	COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents	16.7%
  French	1	COVID-19 Support Center for Foreign Residents	23.8%
  	2	Social Distancing Campaign	19.0%
  	3	COVID-19 Clean Zone Certification	14.3%

  Park Jin-young, Director-General of Public Communications at the city government, said, “The recent poll serves the opportunity to introduce global citizens to the COVID-19 response policies of the Seoul Metropolitan Government. We have been working hard to respond the pandemic throughout this year, although things are still serious as the number of COVID-19 confirmed cases is sharply increasing not only in Korea but also all over the world,” adding, “The best-performing policies will be increasingly implemented for each language group so that global citizens can have an easier access to the municipal policies. The poll results will be taken into consideration in crafting content to promote Seoul’s brand image as well.”