Lee Han-joo, former Chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Policy Planning, was appointed chair of the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences on the 7th. The National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences oversees 26 state-funded research institutes in the economics and humanities and social sciences fields, including the Korea Development Institute (KDI) and the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy (KIEP).
The Prime Minister's Office said Prime Minister Kim Min-seok appointed Lee Han-joo as the new chair of the National Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences. The term runs for three years starting on the 10th. It fills the vacancy two months after former chair Shin Dong-cheon, appointed in Mar. last year under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, resigned in September during the term.
The Prime Minister's Office said, "Chair Lee Han-joo is a macroeconomist and policy expert who has studied structural analysis of the Korean economy, sustainable growth, and welfare. Having served as Chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Policy Planning and head of the Democratic Research Institute, Lee has extensive experience in state affairs and policy and is regarded as a figure with a very high understanding of the Lee Jae-myung administration's governing philosophy."
Lee was born in 1956 and graduated from Kyungbock High School and Seoul National University's department of botany. Lee then earned master's and doctoral degrees from the graduate school of economics at Seoul National University and served as a professor at Kyungwon University and Gachon University. Lee is said to have first met President Lee in 1986 at a civic group debate in Seongnam, when President Lee was preparing for the bar exam.
Lee served as head of the policy headquarters for Lee Jae-myung's campaign in the 2022 presidential election. When President Lee was leader of the Democratic Party, Lee was appointed head of the Democratic Research Institute. In the last presidential election, Lee served as head of the policy headquarters for the Democratic Party's election committee, and after the launch of the Lee Jae-myung administration, Lee served as Chairperson of the Presidential Committee on Policy Planning, which performed the role of a transition committee.