Despite the onset of the rainy season in North Korea, the dire state of the water supply system in North Hwanghae Province means that many of its inhabitants still face inaccessibility to and shortages of water.
Residents of Suan County lack access to a proper water supply system, often forcing them to walk approximately ten-ri (roughly 4km) or further in search of water, a source from North Hwanghae Province told Daily NK. Where cadres can transport water with the help of tractors or ox carts, ordinary residents have little choice but to carry what they can on their backs.
While wells dot the surrounding areas, the demand almost always exceeds available supply, exacerbated by successive years of devastating drought. Mercifully, the source said, the monsoon season does bring with it some relief. Collecting rainwater in buckets and washbowls to boil and use is relatively easy during this period and saves them the long trip.
It is, he quickly cautioned, “far from being a proper and sufficient supply of water,” noting that many are frequently on the brink of dehydration.
When rain is less frequent–a common occurrence, as rainfall in North Korea is highly seasonal– residents resort to drawing stagnant water, rife with diseases boiling alone cannot eradicate, from ditches or reservoirs linked to rice paddies.
“When the water levels are at their poorest in the winter, people melt snow to give children baths,” he said, “but this water is often polluted and leads to skin diseases.”
This issue is especially acute in North Hwanghae Province, impacting not only Suan County but also Singye and Koksan Counties, among others. Affected residents have long wanted to move elsewhere [within North Korea] due to the chronic water issues, but are hamstrung by the state’s tight grip on freedom of movement, according to the source.
The change in leadership ushered in brief flashes of hope for change in this arena, but these have since faded. “The circumstances surrounding the water situation remain ‘completely unchanged’ under Kim Jong Un,” added a second source in North Hwanghae Province.
“The state has talked about its five-year economic development plan and how it’s going to improve the people’s living standards, but people have complained that if it can’t even figure out the water issue, the overall situation is pretty hopeless.”
It should be noted that this small but growing contingent is almost always constituted of residents with comparable access to the outside world, usually by way of radio or word of mouth. Those without this exposure, unfortunately, “simply accept their grim reality as fate,” she said.
“People living in the valleys are often entirely alienated from the outside world. This makes them assume that everyone else must be struggling just as they are and less prone to airing related frustrations.”
Meanwhile, the state has been pouring its resources into the “200-Day Battle” to build Ryomyong Street in Pyongyang, hailed in state media as Kim Jong Un’s next legacy project, rather than diverting those resources to much-needed improvements to meet its population’s most basic needs.