Rice fields dry up as North Korea suffers worst drought in a century
Rice plants grow from the cracked and dry earth in Ryongchon-ri, North Korea. Pic: AP.
North Korea says it has been hit by its worst drought in a century, resulting in extensive damage to agriculture.
The official Korean Central News Agency said the drought caused about 30 percent of its rice paddies to dry up. Rice plants normally need to be partially submerged in water during the early summer.
The news agency reported that rice planting had finished in more than 441,560 hectares of paddy fields “but at least 136,200 hectares of them are parching up”.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry said precipitation in North Korea was abnormally low in May, and that food production could decline significantly if the shortage of rainfall continues.
North Korea suffered a devastating famine during the 1990s that is believed to have killed hundreds of thousands of people.
The reclusive state regularly faces food shortages and about one third of the country’s children are believed to be malnourished.
South Korea and other countries regularly send food aid to North Korea, even as heavy sanctions remain in place over its nuclear program.
In April the United Nations released a report saying humanitarian aid for North Korea was facing “significant underfunding” with about 70 percent of the population facing food insecurity.
The report acknowledgeed the sharp restrictions that North Korea’s government imposes on aid operations, saying the ability of U.N. agencies to freely access communities “is still out of reach.”
The U.N. asked the international community for $111 million for North Korea operations in 2015, its lowest such funding appeal since at least 2009.
Additional reporting from Associated Press
