Bunjo Quotas Leave Farmers with Little

Two years have passed since North Korea introduced the
bunjo [cooperative farm production unit] system in parts of the country,
falling under policies outlined in the
June 28th
Measures,” 
but farmers have reportedly not been able to receive
their full shares of the yield, the Daily NK has learned. This is because
shares are being calculated based on production targets as opposed to actual
output, according to a local source.
 

People were told according to the pojeon
[smaller division of bunjo units] managing system and the bunjo system, they
would be able to profit more compared to the cooperative farm system, so
they worked even harder,
the Yangkang Province-based source
told the Daily NK on Wednesday.
But that was all talk,
and now farmers aren
t receiving their proper shares.” 

North Korea stipulated in its June 28th Measures plans for the state to establish
a
new economic management system in its own style. Under the new system, production units on cooperative farms shrank from groups of 10-25, to smaller factions [pojeon] of 4-6
members. The state receives 70% of the target production, with farmers
taking 30% and any surplus if targets are exceeded.  
 

The measure was put in place in order to
guarantee more autonomy for the farming units and encourage better production
by differentiating farmers
shares according to output.
According to the source, the change was expected to provide greater stability
in people
s livelihoods, but the reality has proved
much different.
 

Most farms in Bochon County have to report
their planned output per pyeong [1 square meter is equal to 0.3025 pyeong] of
land and this has lead to the lack of redistribution,

the source explained.
Last year, in the case of potatoes,
most pojeon were unable to harvest even 15 tons. Based on the planned output of
18 to 21 tons– depending on the fertility of land– that
s a 20 percent shortfall.” 

Municipal, county, and provincial party
cadres, concerned about the prospect of being held accountable if unable to
meet the annual quota laid out by the Ministry of Agriculture, report their
figures exclusively using the numbers from pojeon with exceptionally favorable
output. Because of this, false figures have been accumulating over the years
[targets are based on a moving three-year average of production], raising the bar for production and seeing farmers fall victim.

The source noted that some of these farmers, initially pleased with the systematic changes promising them 30 percent of total
production, are now cursing them. 
“Now the distribution system is based on
the state quota, so areas that had a bad harvest aren
t
able to receive anything,
he said. 

Citing a case from Hwajon Farm in Bochon
County, he reported that 500kg in potatoes, 80kg of
corn, and 180kg of wheat and barley were divvied up among three people. 
This
amount comes to roughly the equivalent of annual food rations for 1.2 people ,
he said, noting that last years drought
and dearth of sufficient fertilizer rendered wreaked havoc on production
levels.  
 

He added that despite the fact that most bunjo comprise members of the same family, suggesting potential for working more systematically, production
did not see the dramatic rise that was predicted, and the lackluster surplus
means there is even less to go around.
 

Naturally, many residents are frustrated
about the results, concerned about how to get by if rations are lower than
prior to the onset of the bunjo system.
We worked
double to meet the target, but how can we not have any return?
they have pointed out.