Poverty in North Korea is extensive, though reliable statistics are hard to come by due to lack of reliable research, pervasive censorship and extensive
media manipulation
Media manipulation is a series of related techniques in which partisans create an image or argument that favors their particular interests. Such tactics may include the use of logical fallacies, manipulation, outright deception (disinformation) ...
in North Korea.
Poverty in North Korea has been widely repeated by Western media sources
with the majority referring to the
famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including war, natural disasters, crop failure, Demographic trap, population imbalance, widespread poverty, an Financial crisis, economic catastrophe or government policies. Th ...
that affected the country in the mid-1990s.
A 2006 report suggests that North Korea requires an estimated 5.3m tonnes of grain per year while harvesting only an estimated 4.5m tonnes, and thus relies on foreign aid to overcome the deficit. Starvation continues to be a systemic problem. In 2021, there were reports of widespread starvation in North Korea.
North Korea has a command economy, which is common among communist nations. The government has complete control over all monetary exchanges, causing the economy to remain stagnant due to a lack of competition between businesses. Poverty in North Korea has also been attributed to poor governance by the totalitarian regime. It is estimated that 60% of the total population of North Korea live below the
poverty line in 2020.
See also
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Media coverage of North Korea
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Jangmadang
Jangmadang (), , are North Korean local markets, farmers' markets, black markets and bazaars. Since the North Korean famine in the 1990s, they have formed a large informal economy, and the government has become more lenient towards them. Howeve ...
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Economy of North Korea#Crisis and famine
References
Further reading
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