Culture ministry names new KOCIS chief

Kim Jae-won, director of Korea Culture and Information Service (KOCIS)

By Do Je-hae

Veteran cultural official Kim Jae-won has been named to lead the Korea Culture and Information Service (KOCIS), the Ministry of Culture, Sports & Tourism announced Wednesday.

Kim, 51, replaces Won Yong-ki as director of the KOCIS, a state-run agency for spreading Korea’s culture overseas. Won will return to the culture ministry to head its public communication office.

Kim has served in various posts at the culture ministry. He headed the ministry's cultural content industry office before his KOCIS appointment.

He led the Korea Culture Center in L.A., where he served from 2009 through 2012. His key activity in LA includes organizing the 30th anniversary projects of the center in 2010.

A graduate of Seoul National University, Kim joined the ministry in 1987. He was seconded to the World Tourism Organization in 1996, where he worked for two years. He also spent two years in Spain to study tourism marketing.

The KOCIS works closely with some 30 overseas Korean culture centers. In recent years, it has focused on creating quality content for online and offline promotions of Korea.

The KOCIS published a series of books on the history of hallyu movement in sports, entertainment, classical music and literature in 2012. KOCIS, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2011, has conducted an annual project to invite members of the foreign media as part of the government’s efforts to promote Korea overseas.