Kim Jong Un focuses year-end speech on ‘food problem’ in North Korea

The year-end address, summarized by state media outlet KCNA on Saturday, made brief reference to “emergency epidemic prevention work.” North Korea has kept quiet throughout the pandemic, This isn’t the first time that Kim has acknowledged the food situation in the nation over the last 12 months.In April, KCNA reported Kim urged people to undertake another “Arduous March,” while addressing a top-level political meeting.The term “Arduous March” refers to a period of devastating famine in the early 1990s, when North Korea’s economy spiraled downward following the collapse of the Soviet Union, which ended the flow of aid into the country.Hundreds of thousands of people — or as many as 10% of the country’s population — were estimated to have starved to death in this period.And in June, Kim admitted that the country was facing a “tense food situation” due to 2020’s typhoon and floods. In the same month, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has estimated that North Korea is short of about 860,000 tons of food — which would have been enough for just over two months of supplies.On Saturday, KCNA also reported Kim’s acknowledgment of “unfavorable conditions this year” and his wish to “increase the agricultural production and completely solve the food problem of the country.”