A North Korean studies researcher who defected to South Korea has become the new president of the Korea Hana Foundation, a government-funded organization tasked with helping defectors resettle in South Korea.

Kim Young-hui, who previously led the North Korea Development Institute (NKDI) since May, is the first North Korean defector to lead the Korea Hana Foundation since its establishment in 2010, according to NKDI and a Unification Ministry press release.

“Since arriving in South Korea in 2002, President Kim Young-hui has built expertise in various fields as an expert on the North Korean economy,” the release said. “She has served