1990s North Korean famine

Arduous March
CountryNorth Korea
LocationNationwide
Period1994–1998
Total deaths240,000 to 3.5 million
CausesEconomic mismanagement,[1] natural disasters,[2] international sanctions,[3] collapse of the Soviet bloc
ReliefFood and humanitarian aid (1994–2002)[4]
ConsequencesMilitarization of economy, spread of limited market activity, food aid from various countries[5]
Arduous March
Chosŏn'gŭl
고난의 행군
Hancha
苦難의行軍
Revised Romanizationgonanui haenggun
McCune–Reischauerkonanŭi haenggun
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The North Korean famine (Korean: 조선기근), also known as the Arduous March (고난의 행군), was a period of mass starvation together with a general economic crisis from 1994 to 1998 in North Korea.[6][7] During this time there was an increase in defection from North Korea which peaked towards the end of the famine period.

The famine stemmed from a variety of factors. Economic mismanagement and the loss of Soviet support caused food production and imports to decline rapidly. A series of floods and droughts exacerbated the crisis. The North Korean government and its centrally planned system proved too inflexible to effectively curtail the disaster. North Korea attempted to obtain aid and commercial opportunities, but failed to receive initial attention.[8][6][9]

Estimates of the death toll vary widely. Out of a total population of approximately 22 million, somewhere between 240,000 and 3,500,000 North Koreans died from starvation or hunger-related illnesses, with the deaths peaking in 1997.[10][11] A 2011 U.S. Census Bureau report estimated the number of excess deaths from 1993 to 2000 to be between 500,000 and 600,000.[12]

  1. ^ Noland, Marcus (2004). "Famine and Reform in North Korea". Asian Economic Papers. 3 (2): 1–40. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.6.8390. doi:10.1162/1535351044193411. S2CID 57565869.
  2. ^ "North Korea: A terrible truth". The Economist. 17 April 1997. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  3. ^ Haggard, Stephan; Noland, Marcus (2007). Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid, and Reform. Columbia University Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-231-51152-0. The failure of the International Atomic Energy Agency, South Korea, and the United States to resolve the crisis in a timely manner and the tightening of sanctions against the country constituted an important background condition for the famine.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hong, Yang-ho was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference WFP was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Stephan., Haggard (2007). Famine in North Korea: markets, aid, and reform. Noland, Marcus, 1959–. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-14000-3. OCLC 166342476.
  7. ^ Hancocks, Paula (2023-03-03). "North Korea's food shortage is about to take a deadly turn for the worse, experts say". CNN. Retrieved 2024-01-27.
  8. ^ Kang, David C. (2012-01-01). "They Think They're Normal: Enduring Questions and New Research on North Korea—A Review Essay". International Security. 36 (3): 142–171. doi:10.1162/isec_a_00068. ISSN 1531-4804. S2CID 57564589 – via Project MUSE.
  9. ^ Haggard, Stephan; Noland, Marcus (2007). Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid, and Reform. Columbia University Press. pp. 38–39. ISBN 978-0-231-51152-0. Most important for our purposes, however, are signs of more aggressive commercial diplomacy and "aid seeking" beginning in 1994. These proposals were initially either rebuffed or their significance ignored.
  10. ^ Noland, Marcus, Sherman Robinson and Tao Wang, Famine in North Korea: Causes and Cures Archived 2011-07-06 at the Wayback Machine, Institute for International Economics.
  11. ^ Spoorenberg, Thomas; Schwekendiek, Daniel (2012). "Demographic Changes in North Korea: 1993–2008". Population and Development Review. 38 (1): 133–158. doi:10.1111/j.1728-4457.2012.00475.x.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference goodkind-2011 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).