A career official with broad experience in budget and fiscal affairs

The Ministry of Planning and Budget said Wednesday it has appointed Kim Myeong-jung, 59, director of the Budget Bureau, the official responsible for overseeing the government's budget planning operations.

Kim will lead the ministry's response to the National Assembly's review of next year's 820.9 trillion won ($607 billion) budget proposal, while also heading efforts to establish a new future-response fund worth at least 162.3 trillion won.

Kim Myeong-jung, newly appointed director of the Budget Bureau at the Ministry of Planning and Budget [Ministry of Planning and Budget]
Kim Myeong-jung, newly appointed director of the Budget Bureau at the Ministry of Planning and Budget [Ministry of Planning and Budget]

A native of Gwangju, Kim graduated from Gwangju Seoseok High School and Seoul National University with a degree in business administration before entering public service through the 40th civil service examination. He is the first official from the Honam region to hold the budget director post since An Do-geol — now a Democratic Party lawmaker — took the role in 2020.

Kim has held a wide range of senior positions in budget and fiscal affairs. At the Ministry of Economy and Finance, he served as director of the State Property Policy Division and as public affairs officer, before going on to lead the Legal and Judicial Budget Division, the Budget Coordination Division and the Budget Policy Division. He later served as deputy governor for economic affairs in Gangwon Province before returning to the ministry as director of fiscal performance review.

After the launch of the Lee Jae Myung administration, Kim was seconded to the state affairs planning committee, where he helped design the new government's budget and fiscal policy framework.

Colleagues describe him as a budget specialist with strong communication skills. In 2019, junior staff named him to a list of "bosses worth emulating." His earlier experience as public affairs officer has also made him an effective communicator with the press.


y2k@heraldcorp.com