Kim Yong-min named 2026 JW Seongcheon Award recipient

Kim Yong-min, a former professor at Chungbuk National University College of Medicine, has been named the recipient of the 2026 JW Seongcheon Award. The announcement was made by the JW Lee Jong-ho Foundation, a public interest foundation of JW Pharmaceutical.

After resigning from his stable professorship in 2018, Kim dedicated himself to international medical relief. He has been deployed four times to conflict and refugee zones, including the Gaza Strip, Gambela in Ethiopia, and Abyei in South Sudan, where he treated patients suffering from gunshot wounds, trauma, and infections.

In recent years, Kim has focused on medical volunteerism in underserved areas of Tanzania and Uzbekistan. Beyond performing complex surgeries, he has worked to establish sustainable medical independence by training local healthcare workers. He personally funded the stay of two Tanzanian doctors for training in South Korea last year and plans to support three more doctors this October.

Domestically, Kim has provided free medical care to the urban poor and migrant workers at Joseph Clinic and Raphael Clinic since 2020. His previous humanitarian efforts include emergency relief following the 2010 Haiti earthquake and medical support for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics and Paralympics. The award ceremony is scheduled for October 21 at the JW headquarters in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province.