First Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for the Park Geun-hye Administration, Lee, Dong Phil (Livestock Management)
First Administrator of the Rural Development Administration, Lee, Yang Ho (Public Administration)
[March 30, 2013]

 YU alumni have become the top leaders of the two organizations that are responsible for the development of Korea's agricultural industry. Both the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs and the Administrator of the Rural Development Administration are graduates of YU.

 First, alumni Lee, Dong Phil (58, left on photo) who is from the YU Department of Livestock Management, class of '74 was appointed as the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs at the appointment ceremony held at the Government Complex Sejong. At this ceremony, Minister Lee stated, "I feel a heavy responsibility taking this important position amidst difficult farming conditions due to the opening up of the market. I will do my best to create happy agricultural industries and agricultural towns."

 After graduating from the YU Department of Livestock Management in 1978, Minister Lee joined the Korea Rural Economic Institute in 1980 and conducted researches on the development of the farming industry and farming towns for over 30 years. In 1994, he began serving as a member of the Prime Minister's Office agricultural policy council committee and since then served as a special full-time member of the Presidential Regulatory Reform Committee, chairperson of the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Regulation Review committee, director of the mid-term financial task force in the agriculture and food sector under the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, and a special member of the Presidential Committee on Regional Development. From 2011, he worked as the director of the Korea Rural Economic Institute where he designed a brighter future for Korea's farming industry and farming villages. He received the Civil Merit Medal in 1999 and received the Dongbaeg Medal of the Order of Civil Merit in 2011.

 Afterwards on the 18th, Lee, Yang Ho (54), an alumni of the YU Department of Public Administration of the class of '78, was appointed as the 25th Administrator of the Rural Development Administration. Administrator Lee stated in his inaugural address, "We will develop the agricultural industry as a new-growth engine industry for the future through R&D and systemized technology transfers to farms."

 Administrator Lee was born in Gyeongbuk in 1959 and graduated from Yeungnam High School and the YU Department of Public Administration in 1982. After beginning his career as a public official through the 26th public adminstration examination in 1982, Administrator Lee served as a manager for promoting trade for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, secretary of agriculture affairs for the OECD summit, secretary for public administration, secretary for investment reviews, manager of cooperatives, secretary of planning and budgeting, and secretary of innovative human resource management.

 In 2011, while working as the director of the agricultural policy bureau for the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, he closed the deal on the credit and economic divisions of Nonghyup together with former Administrator of the Rural Development Administration, Park Hyun Chul. Furthermore, as he served as the agricultural policy bureau director of the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, director of the food industry policy office and the director of planning and coordination office, he became reputed for his leadership that always listened carefully to subordinates.