Out in the Cold in North Korea

Fiona McLysaght, Country Director, visits South Pyongan Province in North Korea to view Concern’s new water system and chart improvements to the current health and agricultural programmes.

Why Concern became involved:
The people in rural communities rely heavily on children to be water bearers, bringing fresh water every day from rivers and streams for household consumption.

During the winter, temperatures drop to -20ºC and the waterholes freeze over. Children must dig through ice to scoop out water, sometimes slipping on their way home, resulting in a return journey to refill in sometimes dire conditions.

The UN agency responsible for agriculture, the FAO, has also reported in its Crop Assessment in November 2006 that, due to the serious damage caused by floods in the region during July and October, the harvesting of cereal crops completed in October 2006 is expected to be lower than previous years.

Hoichang, in particular, was badly affected by floods and landslides in 2006, with loss of life, destruction of arable land and crops and the destruction of infrastructure, including homes, health and educational facilities.

One of the causative factors is the decimation of the natural forests of the country, 80% of which is mountainous. The total cereal import requirement for 2006/7, including commercial imports and food aid, is expected to be 1 million tonnes.

However, FAO has also said that food rations for millions have already been reduced, which is partly as a result of the suspension of food aid.

What Concern has done:
Concern is working towards providing a water system for 72 households in the region, so that this daily chore in harsh conditions can become a thing of the past.

It will also improve the health and quality of life for the entire community, as all water will be protected from bacterial contamination.

In response to the floods, Concern assisted people through its current health and agricultural programmes. This was achieved through the reconstruction of clinics and water and sanitation facilities, and also through the provision of construction materials for seed stores on the flood affected farms.

Concern also implemented projects that directly targeted people affected by the floods in Hoichang and Yangdok Counties. These projects enabled 151 families to reconstruct/ rehabilitate their houses through the provision of construction materials.

Concern is planning to contribute to protecting the environment by rehabilitating natural oak wood forests in three pilot project areas.

It is pertinent that in the annual national address by the DPRK government there is explicit reference to the necessity of “solving economic problems and improving people’s standard of living” and specifically to “solving the problem of food for the people” and “alleviating food shortages”. 

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