New knowledge economy minister: economic expert, technocrat

SEOUL, Sept. 3 (Yonhap) -- Choi Kyoung-hwan, the nominee for the post of knowledge economy minister, is a bureaucrat-turned-lawmaker widely considered to be well versed in economic and financial policy.

The two-term lawmaker of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) passed the high
civil service examination in 1978 and worked at the Economic Planning Board, the
Bank of Korea and as a presidential aide in the late 1990s.
Choi won a parliamentary seat in 2004 and was re-elected in 2008. He was head of
the party's policy coordination panel last year and currently is a member of the
finance and economy committee and the special committee on budget and accounts.
The 54-year-old was considered a favorite for the post due to his 20 years
service in the government, his expertise in economic issues and his links to
former GNP chairwoman Park Geun-hye, who is currently the front-runner for the
country's next presidential race slated for late 2011.
The presidential office has been moving to mend fences with Park after she ran
and lost the GNP's president presidential ticket in 2007 to President Lee
Myung-bak.
Born in Gyeongsan, a city about 300km southeast of Seoul, Choi graduated from
Seoul's Yonsei University in 1979, before attending graduate school in the United
States where he earned a doctorate in economics.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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