Yoon Appoints Ji Young-mi, Director of Korea Pasteur Institute, as New Head of Disease Control Agency

Presidential Office: "Director Ji, an International Virus Expert"
Director Ji Serves as Member of WHO COVID-19 Emergency Committee

President Yoon Suk-yeol appointed Ji Young-mi, director of the Korea Pasteur Institute, as the new Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency on the 16th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 16th, President Yoon Seok-yeol appointed Ji Young-mi, director of the Korea Pasteur Institute, as the new Commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA).

The Presidential Office spokesperson announced through a press release in the afternoon that Director Ji was appointed as the successor to Baek Kyung-ran, the outgoing KDCA Commissioner who recently tendered her resignation.

Director Ji graduated from Seoul National University College of Medicine and earned a master's degree in microbiology and a doctorate in virology from the University of London Graduate School in the UK.

She subsequently served as the head of the Infectious Disease Research Center and Immunopathology Center at the National Institute of Health under the Korea Disease Control Headquarters, the head of the Pan-Governmental Infectious Disease Research Forum, president of the Korean Society of Infectious Diseases, special health and medical advisor to Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, and special representative for health diplomacy at the Korea Foundation for International Exchange.

In particular, she worked as the regional coordinator for the immunization program at the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific Regional Office and is currently serving as a member of the WHO COVID-19 Emergency Committee.

The Presidential Office stated, "Director Ji is one of the global members of the WHO COVID-19 Emergency Committee and participated in the vote to declare the COVID-19 international public health emergency (PHEIC) by WHO. She is a world-renowned expert who has served as a member of the WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on immunization."

Previously, Commissioner Baek reportedly resigned due to controversies related to stock holdings. Since her appointment, Baek faced calls for resignation from opposition parties due to potential conflicts of interest arising from her holdings in bio-related stocks such as SK Bioscience, SK Biopharm, and Syntekabio. She later disposed of all these stocks.

Meanwhile, Director Ji is also known as a 'childhood friend since 1955' of Professor Lee Cheol-woo of Yonsei University Law School, who is an alumnus of Daekwang Elementary School and a classmate at Seoul National University Law School with President Yoon. Professor Lee supported President Yoon from the periphery during the last presidential election.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.