Food Situation In North Korea Appears "Perilous", Experts Warn

North Korea has long suffered from food insecurity, with observers saying there is government mismanagement of the economy.

North Korea's food situation remains perilous according to analysts and a United Nations expert who raised doubts this week about its harvest, and there are signs that it is receiving large shipments of humanitarian aid from China.

North Korea has long suffered from food insecurity, with observers saying that government mismanagement of the economy is exacerbated by international sanctions, natural disasters, and now the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted unprecedented border lockdowns there.

The country typically relies on imports and aid from China to make up for poor harvests, but its strict self-imposed border lockdowns aimed at preventing a coronavirus outbreak have slowed trade to a trickle and cast doubts on its ability to overcome food shortages.

International sanctions imposed over North Korea's nuclear weapons programme cause additional hurdles, and should be eased to stave off a humanitarian crisis, a U.N. rights investigator said in a report seen by Reuters this week.