North Korean leader to strengthen food security in 2022
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Already suffering under stringent US and UN sanctions, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vows to resolve issues related to the people's daily necessities.
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Kim Jong Un speaks during a meeting of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 17, 2021
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un put the economy at the forefront of his agenda-setting speech at the end of a key ruling party meeting on Saturday, according to state media.
The North Korean leader focused on food security and development at a Workers' Party of Korea central committee plenary.
In a speech at the end of the party meeting on Friday, he laid out plans for the coming year, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.
“Achieving an epoch-making step in resolving issues related to the people's daily necessities was presented as an important task," KCNA added in a report on Kim's speech.
Furthermore, KCNA said that he described the challenges of 2022 as "a great life-and-death struggle" and assigned "an important task for making radical progress in solving the people's food, clothing, and housing problems."
"Emergency anti-epidemic measures must be placed as a top national priority and be vigorously carried out... without even a minor slack, gap or loophole," he stressed according to KCNA.
Kim made no mention of the US or directly addressed foreign policy.
However, he stated that Pyongyang would continue to strengthen its military capabilities while keeping in mind "the military environment of the Korean peninsula" and the changing international situation.
This includes ensuring military loyalty and obedience, improving militias, and "the production of powerful equipment corresponding to modern warfare," according to Kim, as quoted by KCNA.
The effects of sanctions on food security in North Korea
In July 2021, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) announced that North Korea might face a food shortage of 860,000 tons last year.
The North Korean government, which is under a series of international sanctions, has long faced difficulties in securing food for its people and regularly suffers from food shortages.
Pressure on the North Korean economy has been increased by the border closures to counter the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the series of storms and floods which hit the country last year.
