North Korea is currently facing the worst food shortage in more than a decade, the country's report to the United Nations said.
In a Voluntary National Review for a United Nations examination of its Sustainable Development Goals report, officials for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) blamed the drop in the country's food production to "natural disasters, insufficient farming materials and low level of mechanization."
North Korea Food Shortage
Pyongyang also blamed its low level of food production, which is at its lowest since 2018, on the sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council for testing nuclear weapons and missiles.
"[The] main obstacles to the government's efforts to achieve the sustainable development of the country [include the] continued sanctions and blockade on the DPRK," North Korea said in the report, according to Bloomberg.
The report is the first time North Korea has made its food crisis public. It also comes after North Korean Leader Kim Jong-Un in June issued a rare warning about the "tense" food situation in the country during an appearance in state media.
The DPRK's food shortage was made worse by the flooding, COVID-19 pandemic, and sanctions led by the United States. Experts say the current food situation in the country resembles that of the famine in the late 1990s, where millions of North Koreans died.
"In the 1990s, when North Korea was undergoing a famine, there was an opportunity to provide humanitarian aid to North Koreans. And perhaps we're starting to see the groundwork for discussion around some sort of humanitarian aid," Jean Lee, a North Korea expert and senior fellow at the Wilson Center told Morning Edition early this month, as reported by NPR.
The food shortage has also led to an undernourished population. According to a UN report published Tuesday, at least 42% of North Koreans are facing food insecurity and are suffering from malnutrition amid the COVID-19 pandemic and severe weather conditions.
Effect on North Korean Citizens
The report found that 10.9 million North Koreans or 42% were undernourished from 2018 to 2020. Around one in five North Korean children under the age of 5 have also suffered stunted growth as of last year.
North Korea now has the sixth highest percentage of undernourishment in the world, after Somalia, the Central African Republic, Haiti, Yemen, and Madagascar, according to The Korea Herald.
North Korea's economy is not expected to grow in 2021 as the country struggles with the effects of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The shortage has also been exacerbated by the U.S.-led sanctions and the country's lack of trade with China, a report by Fitch Solutions found in April.
The DPRK's report to the UN comes after NK News revealed that Kim was celebrating in his "floating amusement park" that features twin waterslides and an Olympic-size pool amid the country's worsening food crisis and COVID-19 situation.
The 260-foot-long was seen docked at what is believed to be his mansion in Wonsan. It was the first time the vessel was seen docked since 2019.
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