USDA: 60% of North Koreans are food insecure
发布时间:2024-09-22 01:22:25 作者:玩站小弟 我要评论
North Korean farmers plants rice in the field in Pyongwon County, South Pyeongan Province, in May 19
。
North Korean farmers plants rice in the field in Pyongwon County, South Pyeongan Province, in May 19. Yonhap |
Some 60 percent of North Koreans are suffering food insecurity, according to a new report released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Economic Research Service, with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic slightly exacerbating the already dire situation.
The report, "International Food Security Assessment, 2020-30," found that 15.3 million North Koreans, or 59.8 percent of the population, are food-insecure in 2020.
"An estimated 59.2 percent of North Korea's population is food-insecure in 2020, rising slightly to 59.8 percent when the effects of the COVID-19 macro shock are taken into account," the report said.
The total for 2020 represents an increase of 700,000 people from last year's assessment, which found 57.3 percent of North Korea's population, or 14.6 million people, to be food-insecure in 2019.
North Korea ranks alongside Afghanistan and Yemen as the most food-insecure countries in Asia, according to the report, which was released this week.
The USDA assessment defines a daily intake of 2,100 calories as necessary to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle and said that North Korea is running a per capita deficit of 430 calories.
In June, a United Nations human rights expert on North Korea expressed concern over "a further deepening of food shortages and widespread food insecurity" worsened by border closures with China that began in January due to COVID-19.
"[North Korea's] trade with China in March and April declined by over 90 percent following the border shutdown," said Tomas Ojea Quintana, special rapporteur on human rights in North Korea, in a statement.
Quintana said that "an increasing number of families eat only twice a day, or eat only corn, and there are reports that some are starving."
The human rights expert also pointed to "the detrimental impact" of international sanctions placed on North Korea over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and urged the U.N. Security Council to reconsider the sanctions.
Recent flooding following weeks of heavy downpours has also raised concerns over food supplies in North Korea, as miles of crops were reported submerged.
The U.N.'s World Food Program said in a report last year that 10.1 million North Koreans were in need of humanitarian assistance and found that only 7 percent of households in the country had an acceptable diet with a frequent intake of high-protein foods and fruits.
North Korea faces chronic food shortages and suffered a devastating famine in the 1990s that some estimates claim resulted in the deaths of more than 3 million people.
The new USDA assessment projects that North Korea's food-insecure population would decline to 44.9 percent in 2030, due to factors such as falling grain prices and slowing population growth. The caloric gap would also diminish from 430 in 2020 to 368 to 2030, the report said.
Overall, the number of food-insecure people across the 76 low-and middle-income countries covered in the report was estimated at 844.3 million, an increase of 83.5 million, or 11 percent, due to COVID-19 income shock. (UPI)
相关文章
评论丨农事运动会:一场农民的盛会、新农人风采展现的盛会、城乡双向奔赴的盛会
评论丨农事运动会:一场农民的盛会、新农人风采展现的盛会、城乡双向奔赴的盛会_南方+_南方plus广东省农事运动会火了,周末两天5场农事活动,场场都成为热搜话题。青瓦村屋旁、乡土大地上,来自广东各地的城2024-09-22The Monday Slatest newsletter.
Today’s biggest stories:There’s significant evidence that Russia was behind the hack of Democratic N2024-09-2215 dog toys that your pooch (probably) can't destroy
The world is filled with a wide variety of good dogs, but some are harder on their toys than others.2024-09-22iPhone X: Hands on with Apple's stunning new device
The Apple iPhone X is everything we hoped for. It's the true successor to the original iPhone, with2024-09-22Supercritical geothermal power: Limitless promise or impossible dream?
Supercritical geothermal power holds the promise of meeting humanity's energy needs for millions of2024-09-22How to make Australian trolls angry: Tell them their country isn't real
Find it difficult to tell when something on the internet is a joke? Maybe don't fly into an abusive2024-09-22
最新评论