North Korea aims to increase self-sufficiency and living standards by building more factories in the provinces, supported by local raw materials. In North Pyongan province, however, these efforts have suffered a setback due to poor crop yields. In Yomju county, the autumn harvest from raw material bases is only two-thirds of the average, potentially disrupting the government’s plans.<\/p>\n
According to a source in the province on Wednesday, members of women’s union chapters in the county and even the families of party officials at all levels have made a big push to help grow crops in the resource bases this year to support the “20\u00d710 regional development policy” unveiled by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. But despite their efforts, this year’s harvest was smaller than usual, much to the disappointment of county residents.<\/p>\n
The 20\u00d710 regional development policy aims to build modernized industrial facilities in 20 counties across North Korea each year, with the aim of raising the basic material conditions of North Koreans to the next level over the next decade.<\/p>\n
In support of this policy, the North Korean authorities have sought to make the provincial factories more self-sufficient by arranging for crops to be grown in the resource bases, which are responsible for supplying the raw materials needed for production.<\/p>\n
In Yomju county, there are about ten resource bases with farms. The crops (such as corn and soybeans) grown at the bases are then supplied as raw materials to food processing plants that make edible oil, malted barley, doenjang (fermented soybean paste) and soy sauce, among other products.<\/p>\n
“This year, huge amounts of labour and agricultural inputs were used to cultivate the raw material bases in Yomju county. But the corn yield dropped significantly due to the impact of extreme weather conditions, especially heavy rain,” the source said.<\/p>\n
North Koreans tend to assume that farms at resource bases always have good yields because labour and inputs are easier to arrange than at ordinary collective farms. But this year’s corn crop is expected to be about 30% smaller than in normal years, the source said, even though more labour and materials have been invested this year than in previous years.<\/p>\n
These circumstances are expected to have a negative impact on production at the provincial factories.<\/p>\n
“Various officials, including factory staff in departments responsible for raw material procurement, are despondent about the poor harvest in raw material bases as it will disrupt production in food processing plants in the region,” the source said.<\/p>\n
A shortage of raw materials slows down production, making it impossible for factories to meet their planned production quotas. As a result, factory managers are under a lot of stress because they may be held responsible for not meeting their quotas.<\/p>\n
“The party’s orders are designed to improve people’s quality of life through greater self-sufficiency and self-reliance, but the fact is that production cannot be sustained without a proper supply of raw materials,” the source said.<\/p>\n
“If these raw materials cannot be supplied by farms in the resource bases, the burden will be shifted to other farms that are already struggling to meet their crop contributions to the army. And if the farms cannot provide the raw materials, the families of various organisations and companies will end up bearing the burden themselves,” he added.<\/p>\n