NK leader calls for attaining grain production goal amid reports of food shortages

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un speaks during a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party's Central Committee on its second day in Pyongyang to discuss rural issues, in this photo released by the North's Korean Central News Agency the following day, Feb. 27. Yonhap

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called on all farms across the country to focus on stepping up their grain production and meeting their goals for this year "without fail," wrapping up a four-day session of a key party meeting, Pyongyang's state media said Thursday.

Kim urged its people to overcome the agricultural challenge for this year to achieve the future goals of development during the plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held the previous day, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

"In order to increase the nationwide agricultural output, attention should be paid to overcoming the lopsidedness in the guidance on farming and keeping the balance to be responsible for farming as a whole and it is important to concentrate on increasing the per-hectare yield at all the farms," the KCNA said in an English-language report.

The North's leader stressed the urgent need to "find out and remove in time the internal factors that have negative effect on the development of agriculture" for the stable development of agricultural production in the near future.

"Saying that nothing is impossible as long as there are the powerful leadership system established throughout the Party and the united strength of all the people, he ardently called for attaining this year's grain production goal without fail and successfully achieving the long-term objective of agricultural development for the sake of the comprehensive development in socialist construction and the self-dependence of the state and well-being of the people," the KNCA said.

Kim also called for improvements in the country's irrigation system to cope with abnormal climatic phenomena and for the supply of "new and high-efficient farm machines" in rural areas.

He then emphasized that the plenary session has marked a "turning point" for accelerating the prosperity of the country by setting "more definite proposals for decisively putting agriculture… on a stable and sustained development track in a few years to come."

Other agenda items discussed at the meeting included strengthening the country's financial foundation and improving banking.

Pyongyang kicked off the meeting Sunday as its food situation appears to be worsening amid deepening economic challenges caused by border lockdowns to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and global sanctions on its nuclear and missile programs.

Observers said the North's rare move to convene a meeting on grain output appears intended to allay public grievances amid reports of famine in the poverty-stricken country.

During its key party meeting late last year, the North identified raising grain production as the No. 1 task among 12 major economic priorities for this year. (Yonhap)