Appeal for 2001 for DPR Korea: Overview by UN Humanitarian Coordinator

CONSOLIDATED INTER-AGENCY APPEAL FOR 2001 FOR THE DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA
OVERVIEW BY THE UNITED NATIONS HUMANITARIAN COORDINATOR DAVID MORTON

STOCKHOLM 29 NOVEMBER 2000

Our observations confirm that the condition of children has improved since the peak of the crisis in 1996/97, but their health is still at risk and the crisis continues - it is by no means over. In fact, this year's poor harvest threatens a reversal if we do not address the situation.

To understand why the DPRK continues to need humanitarian assistance for the sixth year running, we need to look at the country's situation. DPRK is a country that was heavily industrialised. 60% of its population live in urban areas. It is a mountainous country with only 20% of its area suitable for agriculture, and it experiences prolonged, severe winters. Because of these factors, the country's agricultural potential is limited. Farming has always been very intensively managed, and relies heavily on very high inputs of fertilisers and on electrically pumped irrigation systems for rice production. Since the late 1980s, the country lost its traditional trading partnerships with the Socialist countries. This had a severe impact on the country's industrial base including energy production during the 1990s, as previously imported fuel, raw materials and spare parts were no longer available. Food production declined because three factories that used to produce fertiliser locally could only produce very small quantities because of the shortage of energy and raw materials. Rice production was also increasingly affected by shortages of energy to power the irrigation systems and by the deteriorating condition of pumps and piping. All these problems are compounded by erratic weather conditions including recurrent floods and droughts, that have occurred since the mid 1990s.

The recent FAO/WFP Crop and Food Supply Assessment Mission estimates that this year's harvest is worse than those of 1998 and 1999. The crops were hit by a drought earlier in the year, which affected all of North East Asia, as well as tropical storm damage, and a shortage of electricity, and fuel which has greatly hindered irrigation and water delivery systems. The reduced harvest means that next year's total food import requirement will increase to 1.87 million tons as compared to 1.33 million tons during the current year.

There has been little improvement in the delivery of national health services. Most hospitals are unheated during the winter. Children are at particular risk from diarrhoeal diseases from contaminated water, and acute respiratory infections. One third of pregnant women suffer from anaemia, and the prevalence of babies born under 2.5 kgs suggests that pregnant and lactating women are themselves malnourished. Their children are vulnerable from birth, and they may not be able to breastfeed them. The provision of clean water is affected by power cuts, which stop electrical pumping of water and by a shortage of water purification chemicals, and the deterioration of water and sewage pipes. Despite universal access, basic education is under threat due to a shortage of teaching materials. Most schools are unheated during the freezing winter months. The underlying problems can only be mitigated by recovery of the economy, not by humanitarian aid alone. The purpose of this Consolidated Appeal for the DPRK is to help provide a safety net for the most vulnerable people. The Common Humanitarian Action Plan, described in detail in the Appeal document, has been produced by an inclusive process at the country level, guided by an active humanitarian working group. The Action Plan has thus been developed by all the agencies and NGOs in the DPRK together with the full participation of the NGOs both resident and non-resident, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, EU officials and donor representatives. The Government also supports it. I am pleased to report that four NGOs have decided to include their programmes in the Consolidated Appeal document, which is a sign of confidence in the process leading to the formulation of the Appeal and the final result.

The Action Plan identifies that the plight of vulnerable people in the DPRK results from the interaction of several factors - a lack of food resulting in poor nutrition, exacerbated by diarrhoeal diseases caused by drinking contaminated water, together with poor sanitary facilities and practices. Only if these are all tackled together will we be able to preserve the lives of our target beneficiaries. Donors have been generous in the provision of food aid through WFP, but the essential complementary programmes in health, water, sanitation and education are very much under-funded. This year, programmes of UNICEF, WHO, FAO and UNDP and UNFPA were funded less than 20%. I urge donors to redress this situation.

The Common Humanitarian Action Plan aims to:

provide food-aid and a nutritional safety-net to the most vulnerable thus averting a famine;
support efforts to increase domestic food production;
provide resources for the provision of basic life-sustaining services in the health and water and sanitation sectors;
provide capacity-building support to service-providers and technical experts in agriculture, health nutrition, water and sanitation and education activities;
strengthen linkages between emergency operations and longer-term rehabilitation and development programmes;
improve the operating environment for humanitarian organisations active in DPR Korea.

Full details of all the agencies' and NGOs appeals are contained in the Appeal Document. Excluding the food aid component, agencies are appealing for a total of $68 million, as compared with $91 million last year. Some agencies have reduced the amounts they are appealing for this year, not because of a reduction in needs, but because of low support by donors. The country's needs go far beyond what is being requested.

It is not easy for agencies to implement programmes in the DPRK. Difficulties include a lack of information and data, constraints on access and monitoring, and difficulties to assess the impact of programmes. DPRK is a country that is still technically in a state of war - National security concerns are paramount for the Government and are stated to be the reasons for the constraints on access and information. Nevertheless, there has been a very dramatic improvement in agency working conditions since the start of relief programmes in 1995 and the agencies and NGOs believe that progress continues to be made. There have been slow but steady improvements in mutual understanding and in confidence-building.

Humanitarian aid provides a safety net for the most vulnerable but cannot address the underlying problems. The living conditions and the health of people will only improve through medium and long-term efforts for recovery of the economy. Efforts to engage in a dialogue on recovery are coordinated through the Round Table Process. The Consolidated Appeal process for humanitarian assistance programmes and the Round Table process for recovery proceed in very close coordination with each other, to ensure a seamless transition from relief to recovery. The success of recovery in agriculture and in other key areas of the economy such as energy is essential to provide an exit strategy for the humanitarian programmes.

I urge donors to generously support this Consolidated Appeal for the needy people of the DPRK.

Thank you