by Choi Hokyung
Published 17 Nov.2025 10:15(KST)
Updated 17 Nov.2025 15:00(KST)
The Sogang University Mentoring Center, "Window of Thought," announced on November 17 that Sangbu Kim, Vice President for Digital Transformation at the World Bank, will deliver a special lecture titled "Digital Economic Development Strategies for Developing Countries and Korea's Role" at 2 p.m. on December 1 at the Sogang University Economics Building (GN Hall) in Mapo-gu, Seoul.
Vice President Kim passed the 40th National Civil Service Exam and built his digital expertise through positions at the Ministry of Information and Communication (now the Ministry of Science and ICT), the Presidential Office, and companies such as LG Uplus and Google. Last year, he was appointed as the inaugural Vice President for Digital Transformation at the World Bank.
The Vice President for Digital Transformation role was established by the World Bank to promote development in developing countries through digital means. Since Korea joined the World Bank in 1955, Vice President Kim is the first Korean to reach the organization's top executive level.
Next month, the World Bank will open the "Global Knowledge Center" in Songdo, Incheon, and plans to support developing countries by leveraging Korea's experience and technology in artificial intelligence (AI) and digital innovation.
In an interview with Korean media at the World Bank headquarters in Washington, D.C. last month, Vice President Kim stated, "Korea's rapid economic growth and its transformation into a fully advanced country through digitalization offer hope to less developed countries that they can become middle-income nations, and to middle-income countries that digitalization can provide opportunities to advance to developed status."
Park Jongbok, former CEO of Standard Chartered Korea, will participate as a panelist in this eighth special lecture organized by "Window of Thought."
The Sogang University Mentoring Center was established under the leadership of Park Youngsun, former Minister of SMEs and Startups, who encountered mentoring systems at Harvard University and other U.S. institutions while serving as a Senior Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School. Park and Professor Kim Sangyong, Director of Planning at Sogang University, serve as co-directors of the center.
With the slogan "The Future Through Experience," the Sogang University Mentoring Center is conducting various lectures with the goal of guiding young people to achieve their dreams during the transition to the AI era.
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