[Profile] Cho Kyu-hong, First Vice Minister, Nominated as Minister of Health and Welfare ... Budget Expert from Ministry of Economy and Finance

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Jo Gyu-hong (55, photo), the first vice minister of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, has been nominated as the new Minister of Health and Welfare. This comes just four months after he was appointed vice minister in May, following his career at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.

Candidate Jo graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in Economics, earned a master's degree in Public Administration from Seoul National University, and obtained both a master's and a doctorate in Economics from the University of Colorado, USA. He entered public service by passing the 32nd Administrative Examination and worked at the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Planning and Budget Office, and served as the Economic Budget Review Officer at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.

From October 2018 to October last year, he served as a director at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and afterward contributed to creating economic pledges as a specialist in the Economic Division 1 of the Presidential Transition Committee.

Ahead of the launch of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, he was once considered a candidate for the second vice minister of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance but was appointed on May 9 as the first vice minister responsible for planning coordination and welfare at the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Given the Ministry’s annual budget surged to 97 trillion won after the COVID-19 outbreak, he was evaluated as a budget expert capable of efficiently leading key policies in the post-COVID era, including support for vulnerable households and building social safety nets.

After his appointment as vice minister, he chaired the first Central Livelihood Security Committee under the new government in July and raised the 2023 median income standard by 5.47% compared to this year. Recently, he has been actively working in the welfare sector, leading a dedicated task force to improve welfare blind spots following incidents such as the "Suwon Three Mothers Case" and the "Youth from Orphanage Case," which involved deaths due to financial hardship.

Kim Dae-gi, Chief of Staff to the President, stated in a briefing on the afternoon of the 7th that candidate Jo’s experience in pension and health insurance reform, which are current issues at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, was considered in the appointment. He also explained that Jo was judged to be the right person to lead the realization of the Yoon administration’s national agenda in the health and welfare sector.

▶Gyeongnam Ham-an ▶Seoul National University, Department of Economics ▶32nd Administrative Examination ▶Ph.D. in Economics, University of Colorado, USA ▶General Manager of Budget Coordination, Budget Office, Ministry of Strategy and Finance ▶Senior Administrative Officer, Presidential Planning and Management Office ▶Chief Secretary to the Minister, Ministry of Strategy and Finance ▶Fiscal Management Officer, Budget Office, Ministry of Strategy and Finance ▶Director, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

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