Ministry of Health and Welfare appoints Go Sang-baek to lead institute

South Korea's Ministry of Health and Welfare said it will appoint Go Sang-baek as president of the Korea Health Industry Development Institute on Monday.

Go, a professor at Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, will become the institute's 11th president. His three-year term runs from Aug. 10, 2026, to Aug. 9, 2029, when he will oversee its operations.

He has been a professor at Yonsei University since 2004 and has served as head of the university's systems science convergence research institute and medical science research office at its Future Campus. Go also formerly led the Korean Society of Digital Health.

The institute runs support programs for companies in pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, medical devices, digital health care and international medical services. Its 2026 guidebook carries information on 72 programs, extending the guidance's coverage by 67 percent from 43 programs last year.

The ministry said: "We expect the new president, drawing on his medical expertise and extensive policy-field experience, to advance key policies such as health-care technology innovation and fostering the biohealth industry, making a major contribution to the health industry's development."

Go was chosen after document reviews and interviews by the institute's executive recommendation committee, before the minister made the appointment under the relevant rules. He is a regular member of the National Academy of Medicine of Korea and the Korean Academy of Science and Technology, where he is active in policy work.