North Korean leader Kim Jong-un acknowledged the failure of the state rationing system during a two-day Politburo meeting of the Workers’ Party held at Mount Myohyang from Jan. 23. to Jan. 24., according to the state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun.
“The failure to provide basic food and necessities to the people in rural regions is a serious political problem that the party and government cannot ignore,” Kim said. This was Kim’s first public admission regarding the dire state of the country’s economy. This is also the first time Kim held a Politburo meeting in the province - previous meetings were held in the capital city of Pyongyang. Experts say that a rare change in location may signal mounting public dissatisfaction in rural areas.
The Rodong Sinmun extensively covered Kim’s remarks on its Jan. 25. edition, dedicating its first five pages to the Politburo meeting. Kim criticized party officials for their lack of initiative and inability to offer realistic solutions, highlighting the North’s failure to establish regional industrial factories in most cities.
He also emphasized the “regional development 20x10 policy”, which entails building regional industrial factories in 20 counties every year for the next decade to improve the living standards of North Koreans.
Kim stated that the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party would assess the performance of provincial, municipal, and county party secretaries based on their loyalty, public service, and responsibility in implementing the rural development policy. Politburo members were also instructed to oversee cities and counties individually. The idea is to hold them accountable for poor performance in the future.
Experts say this strategy is unlikely to succeed, as there is a critical shortage of necessary materials and electricity to build the factories. “The idea is to set targets that are difficult to achieve in reality and then blame party officials for the lack of development in the provinces,” said a government official. “This kind of performance-based competition will likely cause adverse effects and further damage the local economy.”
The North’s infrastructure development, including roads, housing, and power supply, is concentrated in Pyongyang, leading to a significant disparity between urban and rural areas. The severe urban-rural gap has earned the North the nickname “Pyongyang Republic.”
Since the collapse of the state rationing system in the 1990s, most North Koreans have been forced to rely on local marketplaces for food. The North’s efforts to normalize the rationing system after October 2005 were largely unsuccessful, with only a few regions, such as Pyongyang, receiving rations. Following the November 2009 currency reform, attempts were made to reinstate the rationing system, but food distribution was centered on urban workers and party members.
