Yoon to Simultaneously Replace 1st and 2nd Vice Ministers of Ministry of Science and ICT on 23rd... Also Changes Head of Science and Technology Innovation Headquarters (Comprehensive)

All Vice Minister-Level Personnel at the Ministry of Science and ICT Replaced

President Yoon Suk-yeol is speaking at the 12th "Public Livelihood Discussion" held under the theme "Daejeon, the Science Capital Innovating the Republic of Korea" on the 16th at ICC Hotel in Yuseong-gu, Daejeon.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

President Yoon Suk-yeol will carry out personnel changes for the 1st and 2nd Vice Ministers of the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Head of the Science and Technology Innovation Headquarters on the 23rd.

On the 22nd, a senior official from the Presidential Office told Asia Economy in a phone call, "An announcement regarding the new appointments of the 1st and 2nd Vice Ministers of the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Head of the Science and Technology Innovation Headquarters is expected on the 23rd." It was explained that the vice minister replacements will be made due to the overall need for reform in the ministry handling science, technology, and information and communication policies.

Earlier, on the night of the 7th, President Yoon answered the question "What kind of president do you want to be remembered as?" on KBS 1TV's 'Special Talk: Visiting the Presidential Office' by saying, "A warm president who cherishes children greatly, and a president who prepared for the future through the advancement of science and technology." On the 16th, he also presided over a public discussion on science and technology in Daejeon and called for reforms in the national research and development system.

This vice minister replacement is interpreted as an effort to change the atmosphere through personnel reform and to more strongly drive policies across the entire science and technology sector. By replacing all vice minister-level officials, the aim is to accelerate the implementation of science and technology policies.

Cho Sung-kyung, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, is a former science and technology secretary of the Presidential Office and has served as vice minister since July last year.

Park Yoon-gyu, the 2nd Vice Minister, has built his career mainly in the information and communication field and was appointed in June 2022.

Joo Young-chang, the Head of the Science and Technology Innovation Headquarters, is a former professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Seoul National University and has been in office since May 2022, shortly after the Yoon Suk-yeol administration began.