Seven in ten North Koreans malnourished, UN agency says

Some 18 million people, including 1.3 million children under five, are affected. Average daily food rations are around 300 grams, lower than UN recommendation of 600. UN agency calls for fresh international action.

Seoul (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Nearly 70 per cent of the North Korean population is malnourished, this according to a UN report on the need for humanitarian aid to North Korea.

The report by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) notes that some 18 million North Korean people, including 1.3 million children under five, are malnourished because of poor state food rations which lack protein and fat.

The study points out that the North's daily food rations remained at 300-380 grams per person on average last year, just half of some 600 grams that the United Nations recommends as the minimal daily requirement.

OCHA stressed the need for fresh international assistance to the North, as North Korean residents suffer insufficiency in food, sanitation and drinking water because of recurring natural disasters like droughts and floods.