AP News, September 7th, 2007
Thousands of people in North Korea require immediate and continued humanitarian food aid after devastating floods last month, the U.N. World Food Program said Friday.
The agency said villagers and farmers "suffered extensive losses of food stocks, livestock, and private kitchen gardens" _ all critical for winter.
The heaviest downpours in 40 years and subsequent floods swept across North Korea last month, leaving at least 600 people dead or missing and about 100,000 people homeless, North Korea has said.
A statement issued by the WFP regional office in Bangkok said there was a special need for nutritional support for children and other vulnerable persons,
"WFP is providing emergency food assistance in 37 of the hardest hit counties, but we are also concerned that children and pregnant mothers are able to receive adequate food as these areas struggle to recover," said Jean-Pierre DeMargerie, WFP's director for North Korea, quoted in the statement.
WFP said North Korea _ noted for being one of the world's most closed and secretive nations _ gave it extensive access and cooperation on Aug. 17-26 to assess the disaster's impact on food security.
According to the agency, the floods had their greatest impact on the "Cereal Bowl" lowlands of North and South Phyongan, and North Hwanghae and South Hwanghae provinces, representing 76 percent of the country's total arable land.
It cited estimates by North Korea's Agriculture Ministry that 16 percent of total arable land _ normally cultivated with rice, maize, soybean and other crops _ had been damaged. The flooding may have also disrupted food distribution channels.
Pyongyang has agreed to WFP emergency food distributions for a three-month period to 215,000 people in six provinces, the statement said. The estimated cost of the emergency response is $5 million to $6 million.
