South Korea names first woman to head food and drug safety ministry

Seunghee Kim, a veteran member of South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, has been named to become its first female minister. Kim has a pharmacology degree from Seoul National University and a doctorate in biochemistry from Notre Dame.

South Korea President Park Geun-Hye appointed Kim to head the ministry, replacing Seung Chung, who stepped down to run for elective office.

Kim had been vice minister since 2011 and before that served as the first head of the agency's National Institute of Food and Safety Evaluation. She joined the agency in 1988.

- here's the Korea Times story

Editor's note: This story has been edited to give the correct name of the president of South Korea.