UN to Send Food Aid to North Korea

The World Food Program says it is launching an emergency operation to help feed 3.5 million people suffering from hunger in North Korea, according to CNN.

A WFP representative said the global body believes food shortages have “led to a serious deterioration in the health of millions” in the East Asian country.

The World Food Program told reporters that the program would be sending emergency food aid worth 200 million US dollars to North Korea to help feed 3.5 million people there.

The Rome-based organization said in a statement on Friday that a harsh winter and a lack of resources have left the country highly vulnerable to food shortages, while government rations are only meeting half of the population‘s daily food needs.

The WFP added that it would provide staple cereals, corn-soy milk, a rice-milk blend, and nutrient-rich biscuits.

While rates of acute malnutrition have not yet reached crisis levels, the WFP warned that the situation could deteriorate rapidly if food supply is further disrupted.

South Korea, which had provided a bulk of foreign aid to North Korea, scaled back assistance after North Korea sank one of its warships and an artillery attack on an island that killed four people.

“The WFP says it is commencing its operation because government rations were currently providing only half of people’s daily food needs,” a report by China‘s Xinhua news agency explained.

In addition, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) launched a US$20 million appeal to prevent the development of acute malnutrition in North Korea and will focus on the five most food insecure provinces.

(아주경제 앤드류 이 기자)

Park Sae-jin swatchsjp@ajunews.com