Science experts to help poor nations

Korea plans to dispatch more than 20 science experts to research institutes in developing nations to share the country’s expertise in science and technology, the government said yesterday. The Ministry of Science and Technology said it has selected 22 Ph.D. and master’s degree-level experts in fields including electronics, energy, machinery and bioengineering, to work as research assistants and consultants in Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Laos and Mongolia. The group, dubbed the Techno Peace Corps, will be dispatched in November after receiving eight weeks of adjustment and language training, the ministry said. The program, to be managed by the state-run Korea Foundation for International Cooperation of Science and Technology, is expected to help Korean engineers gain valuable hands-on experience, the ministry said. The support team will stay at least one year, with the government paying salaries and expenses.