Inequality worsening in N. Korea's capital, rural areas: ministry

▲ Kim In-ae, deputy spokesperson for South Korea's unification ministry, speaks at a press briefing on Jan. 26, 2024. (Yonhap)

unification ministry-NK economy

Inequality worsening in N. Korea's capital, rural areas: ministry

SEOUL, Jan. 26 (Yonhap) -- The economic gap between Pyongyang and North Korea's provincial areas appears to be further widening in terms of food rationing, housing and health services, South Korea's unification ministry said Friday.

The assessment came as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has vowed to develop the regional industrial economy by building modernized factories in 20 counties each year over the next decade.

"There are reportedly different benefits for residents in Pyongyang and regional areas in terms of their rationing experience or the amount of rationed food," Kim In-ae, deputy spokesperson for the ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs, said in a regular press briefing.

"Such inequality has worsened due to gaps in the level of infrastructure and access in areas of education and health services," Kim said, adding that the North's ongoing housing projects in rural areas appear to be sluggish.

In a Workers' Party meeting earlier this week, the North Korean leader said the country's regional economy is in a "terrible situation" in which basic living necessities are not sufficiently provided to residents.

North Korea has been emphasizing the importance of economic development and strengthening the role of the cabinet as the "economic control tower" as the country grapples with prolonged economic difficulties.

The North has been under tightened U.N. sanctions, which call for, among other things, a ban on the country's exports of coal and other mineral resources to cut off North Korea's access to hard currency.

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