Tag: poverty
New drivers fuel rise in North Korea traffic accidents
North Korean authorities are struggling to manage a surge in traffic accidents as private car ownership expands, with more than 30 accidents reported in...
Hyesan school shifts cooking exam costs to students
A technical senior middle school* in Hyesan, Ryanggang province, is drawing parent complaints over a new requirement. Students in its hotel cuisine class had...
Rising prices drive North Korean women toward prostitution
More women in parts of North Korea are turning to prostitution to survive amid worsening economic hardship. Police have tried posing as clients to...
A teen’s vow to catch leeches moves North Koreans to tears
A high school sophomore in Hyesan, Ryanggang province, recently finished mandatory military training. The training is run by the Red Youth Guard, a paramilitary...
In China, North Koreans hear they’re the poor ones
North Korean authorities boast of the country's rising international standing. But in 2026, a very different story is spreading among North Korean people in...
Hunger drives North Korean children to raid state orchards
Hunger is driving teenagers in Kwail county, South Hwanghae province, to sneak into state orchards this summer. They pick peaches and plums to eat...
Elderly North Koreans recall Kim Il Sung era fondly despite hardship...
Elderly North Koreans in several regions are voicing nostalgia for the era of founding leader Kim Il Sung. They unfavorably compare today's economic hardship...
Behind Sinuiju’s brighter nights, a widening electricity divide
Electricity supply in Sinuiju, North Pyongan province, has improved somewhat in 2026 compared with last year. Neighborhoods near provincial and city party offices, the...
North Korea’s rural transit gap leaves a daughter unable to say...
A woman in North Korea lost both parents in a traffic accident in Kumya county, South Hamgyong province, but was unable to attend their...
Family of four found dead in North Korea’s Sakju county amid...
A family of four was found dead in Sakju county, North Pyongan province, in 2026, after reportedly struggling for some time with severe poverty,...
