S. Korea to Toughen Monitoring on Zika Virus

South Korea will improve its monitoring infrastructure on the Zika virus as the country has confirmed its first case, the government said Wednesday.

The government and the ruling Saneuri Party agreed during an emergency meeting to strengthen the monitoring of passengers returning from Zika outbreak countries and share related information between health authorities.

On Monday, the Ministry of Health and Welfare announced the country's first Zika virus case. A 43-year-old man tested positive for the mosquito-borne virus after traveling to Brazil between mid-February and early March.

The government said it will first work with the country's three major mobile careers to adopt a so-called "smart quarantine system" by the end of this year to effectively prevent the influx of the disease.

Under the system, a text message will be automatically sent to a passenger entering the country who has been to a country with known Zika outbreaks.

"The government has mulled over (adopting the system) since last year's MERS outbreak," Health Minister Chung Chin-yeob told reporters following the meeting.

Chung said that the government currently works with the No. 2 mobile carrier KT and plans to join hands with the two others.

Also, the government and the ruling party agreed to push forward with a system allowing airport authorities to...