[Korean Farmers and Fishermen Newspaper, Reporter Go Seong-jin] Kim Jong-gu, the former director of the Food Policy Bureau, was appointed as the new Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and took office on December 29 of last year. As his inaugural statement, the new Minister Kim Jong-gu said, "It is my duty to unwaveringly push forward the national agenda and yearly core objectives, connecting them to achievements that the people can feel, and in this process, I will pour all my abilities. I will definitely achieve the fruition of the agricultural policy transformation towards agriculture with the people and a countryside that realizes happiness." Minister Kim, born in 1968 in Gyeongju, graduated from Daegu Neungin High School and Yeongnam University. He is a veteran civil servant from the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, having stepped down from his position as director of the Food Policy Bureau after the inauguration of the Lee Jae-myung government.