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2013 DPRK defection numbers

Thursday, January 2nd, 2014

UPDATE 1 (2014-1-13): Yonhap reports on the 2013 defection numbers:

The [Ministry of Unification], which handles inter-Korean affairs, said a total of 1,516 North Koreans settled in South Korea in 2013, up slightly from 2012 when 1,502 North Koreans arrived in the South, with women accounting for 76 percent of the total.

The ministry said South Korea is now home to 26,124 North Koreans.

And according to the Daily NK:

A total of 1516 North Koreans sought refuge in South Korea last year, bringing the total number of defectors living in the South to 26,124, 69% of whom are female.

ORIGINAL POST (2014-1-2): The Hankyoreh offers some decent data on DPRK defectors entering South Korea in 2013:

An estimated 1,500 North Korean refugees entered South Korea in 2013.

The estimate, which is roughly equivalent to the 2012 total, shows that the number has dwindled to less than 2,000 annually for the two years since Kim Jong-un took power in Pyongyang.

According to a Dec. 25 announcement by the Ministry of Unification, a total of 1,420 refugees had received protection authorization following government questioning as of November 2013. When the individuals currently undergoing questioning are factored in, the total number of refugees entering the country for the year is expected to be around 1,500 – roughly equivalent to the 1,502 refugees who came to South Korea in 2012.

The number would bring the total refugees arriving since the 1990s up to 26,100. The annual tally of refugees passed 2,000 for the first time in 2006. For five years, it remained in the 2,000 to 3,000 range, with 2,548 in 2007, 2,805 in 2008, 2,929 in 2009, 2,402 in 2010, and 2,706 in 2011.

But in 2012, the year the Kim Jong-un regime took over, the total fell to 1,500 a year, a drop of approximately 500 to 1,500.

Analysts said the decrease under the Kim regime was likely tied to stronger border defense aimed at securing the regime, along with more aggressive anti-defection policies, including actions to repatriate those who crossed the border.

Indeed, North Korea is known to have markedly stepped up its border defense since just after the 2011 death of Kim’s father and predecessor Kim Jong-il.

Another possible reason given for the drop was an improvement in food and economic conditions in North Korea in 2012 and 2013.

Meanwhile, North Korea continues to adopt a proactive policy of readmitting refugees who left for South Korea. In 2013 alone, thirteen defected opted to leave the South to return to the North.

While I am perfectly willing to admit that some DPRK defectors living in the ROK might have returned home, I believe it is not accurate to assert “thirteen defected opted to leave the South to return to the North” without mentioning that the DPRK has the ability to threaten family members who remained in the North to draw defectors back to the land of their birth.

Read the full story here:
Total number has dipped since Kim Jong-un took power due to tighter border control and N. Korea welcoming some refugees back
Hankyoreh
Kim Kyu-won
2014-1-2

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Posted in Emigration statistics, Statistics | Comments Closed

2013 private ROK aid to the DPRK

Monday, December 30th, 2013

Yonhap announced that the ROK is allowing private aid groups to send goods to the DPRK. The article also mentions the total volume of the ROK’s official and private assistance to the DPRK in 2013.

According to the article:

South Korea endorsed private humanitarian aid to North Korea on Monday, an official said, in the latest assistance to Pyongyang despite lingering tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

The two private aid groups are allowed to ship nutritional and medical supplies worth 240 million won (US$227,000) to infants, children and people suffering tuberculosis in the North, unification ministry spokesman Kim Eyi-do told reporters.

The planned aid brought the total amount of assistance to the North by South Korea’s private aid groups to 6.8 billion won since February when President Park Geun-hye took office in Seoul.

South Korea has also shipped aid worth 13.5 billion won to the North through international organizations since February.

All posts on South Korean assistance to the DPRK in 2013 can be found here.

All posts on aid to the DPRK can be found here.

All posts on aid to the DPRK that have statistics can be found here.

Read the full story here:
S. Korea approves private humanitarian aid to N. Korea
Yonhap
2013-12-30

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Posted in 2013 aid from South Korea, Foreign aid statistics, International Aid, South Korea, Statistics | Comments Closed

Economic gap between the two Koreas

Monday, December 23rd, 2013

According to Yonhap:

Trade and economic levels between South and North Korea remained quite wide last year, data showed Monday, pointing to prolonged lackluster business and economic conditions in the reclusive North.

According to the data by Statistics Korea, South Korea’s total trade volume stood at US$1.07 trillion as of 2012, which is 157 times larger than the North’s $6.8 billion. In particular, the South’s exports came to $547.9 billion, 188.9 times larger than those of the North.

The nominal gross national income (GNI) levels between the two Koreas also remained wide.

The GNI for the South was estimated at 1,279.5 trillion won ($1.21 trillion) last year, 38.2 times larger than the North, the data showed. On a per-capita basis, South Korea’s GNI was 18.7 times larger than that of the North.

South Korea also outperformed the North in infrastructure and other social overhead capital spending.

The South’s road network totaled 105,703 kilometers, which compared with the 26,114 km for the North, the data showed. The South had the power generating capacity of 81.8 million kilowatts a year, which is 11.3 times larger than the North.

The only category that the North outperformed the South was in coal production. It produced a total of 25.8 million tons of coal last year, about 10 times the amount of coal produced by the South, according to the data.

The two Koreas had a combined population of 74.4 million, with the South holding a population of about 50 million, the data showed.

The statistics agency has been providing such information on the North every year since 1995 as a way to provide a glimpse into the economic and industrial conditions of the reclusive country.

Read the full story here:
Trade, economic gaps between 2 Koreas remain wide: data
Yonhap
2013-12-23

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Posted in Automobiles, Coal, Demographics, Energy, GDP statistics, International trade, Mining/Minerals, South Korea, Statistics, Trade Statistics, Transportation | Comments Closed

DPRK – PRC trade up 6.2% in Jan – Oct 2013

Wednesday, December 4th, 2013

According to Yonhap:

Trade between North Korea and its major trading partner China rose 6.2 percent on year in the first 10 months of this year to total US$4.72 billion, data showed Wednesday, despite international sanctions against Pyongyang over its defiant nuclear and missile tests.

The rise suggested that North Korea is becoming increasingly reliant on China, although Beijing is not supportive of Pyongyang’s nuclear ambition.

In the 10-month period, North Korea’s exports to China jumped 12.3 percent on year to account for $2.36 billion, according to data by the China Customs Information Center. The North’s imports gained 1.8 percent to $2.36 billion.

Remarkably this data shows a perfect balance of trade between the DPRK and China (exports=imports). This is a reversal from earlier in the year when it was reported that DPRK – PRC trade volumes had fallen from the previous year. See previous posts on DPRK trade statistics here.

Read the full story here:
Trade between N. Korea, China rise 6.2 pct in Jan-Oct despite sanctions
Yonhap
2013-12-4

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Posted in China, International trade, Statistics, Trade Statistics | Comments Closed

Inter-Korean trade begins to recover in Q4 2013

Sunday, November 24th, 2013

According to Yonhap:

Inter-Korean trade has gradually been returning to normal levels following the reopening of a joint industrial park in North Korea’s border city of Kaesong in September, government data showed Sunday.

According to data from the Ministry of Unification and the Korea Customs Service, two-way trade between South and North Korea amounted to US$152.15 million last month. The amount is equivalent to 80.9 percent of total bilateral trade in the same month last year.

“Exports have grown with the entry of large amounts of raw materials, production facilities and food supplies as (the Kaesong complex) prepares to resume operations in earnest,” a ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The complex, which ground to a halt in April amid high security tensions on the Korean Peninsula, reopened in September. Inter-Korean trade is limited to the joint factory park because all other economic exchanges have been banned since May 2010 due to North Korea’s sinking of a South Korean warship in March of that year.

“The Kaesong Industrial Complex is gradually recovering to previous levels,” the official said.

The complex, a key outcome of the first-ever inter-Korean summit in 2000, combines South Korean capital and technology with cheap North Korean labor to produce clothes, utensils, watches and other labor-intensive goods.

The project serves as a key source of cash for the impoverished country.

My compendium of stories related to the closure and reopening of the Kaesong Zone can be found here.

Read the full story here:
Inter-Korean trade recovers following reopening of Kaesong complex
Yonhap
2013-11-24

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Posted in Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC), South Korea, Special Economic Zones (Established before 2013), Statistics, Trade Statistics | 1 Comment »

DPRK-China trade up 4.4% (Jan-Sept) despite sanctions

Tuesday, November 5th, 2013

According to Yonhap:

North Korea’s trade with China gained 4.4 percent from a year ago in the first nine months of this year, new data showed Tuesday, raising questions about the effectiveness of sanctions put in place to punish the North for conducting its third nuclear test earlier this year.

Trade volume rose to US$4.69 billion between January and September from $4.49 billion for the same period last year, according to the data released by the China Customs Information Center.

The data, seen by Yonhap News Agency, showed that North Korea’s exports to China jumped 9.4 percent to $2.09 billion during the nine-month period, while its imports from China fell 2.3 percent to $2.6 billion.

A South Korean diplomatic source in Beijing suspected that North Korea’s shortage of hard currency might be a factor for the decline in imports.

“North Korea’s lack of foreign currency may be partly attributable to the fall in imports of Chinese goods,” the source said on the condition of anonymity.

During the first nine months of this year, North Korea’s imports of Chinese crude oil, however, rose to 415,000 tons, compared with 402,000 tons for the same period last year.

China did not export crude oil to North Korea in June and July this year, but resumed crude exports in August, according to the source.

In August and September, China exported 165,000 tons of crude oil to North Korea, the source said.

Read the full story here:
N. Korea-China trade up 4.4 pct in Jan.-Sept. despite sanctions
Yonhap
2013-11-5

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Posted in China, Energy, International trade, Oil, Statistics, Trade Statistics | Comments Closed

DPRK population at 24.9 million (estimated)

Thursday, October 31st, 2013

According to Yonhap (2013-10-31):

North Korea’s population stands at 24.9 million, the 49th-largest in the world, a report by a United Nations fund showed Thursday.

According to “State of World Population 2013” published by the U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA), the North Korean population is expected to grow 0.5 percent in the 2010-15 period.

It said that boys born during this five-year period could expect to live an average of 66 years, while the female life expectancy was estimated at 73 years.

The latest findings also said a woman in the communist country is likely to give birth to two children, smaller than the overall average of 2.5 kids for the 202 countries checked.

The UNFPA said that 16 percent of the North’s population were between the ages of 10 and 19. This is just shy of the global average of 16.7 percent, although it is 3 percentage points higher than the comparable figure for South Korea.

In the number of people in the 10-19 age group, the North ranked 118th, with South Korea trailing far behind at 151st, the report showed.

The report said that despite various deprivations affecting the isolationist country, 100 percent of childbirths were assisted by trained medical personnel such as doctors, nurses and midwives.

The findings, meanwhile, showed the maternal death rate in the country at 81 deaths for every 100,000 births, while infant mortality rate reached 28 for every 1,000 children under the age of 5.

The population fund said it based its report on data provided by various U.N. organizations including the United Nations World Population Prospects.

The UN report can be found here.

Read the full story here:
N. Korea’s population stands at 24.9 mln, 49th-largest in the world: report
Yonhap
2013-10-31

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Posted in Demographics, Statistics, UN, UN Population Fund | Comments Closed

DPRK crop imports from China hit annual high

Wednesday, October 30th, 2013

According to Yonhap:

North Korea’s crop imports from China more than doubled to hit a yearly high in September, data showed Wednesday.

According to the data compiled by Kwon Tae-jin, a senior researcher at the Korea Rural Economic Institute, North Korea imported 67,208 tons of grains and legumes such as flour, rice, corn and bean in September from its neighboring country, compared with 26,804 tons a month earlier.

The surge was attributed mainly to Pyongyang’s increased imports of corn. The impoverished nation bought a total of 50,613 tons of corn last month, nearly nine times the amount imported the previous month, the data showed.

“The big increase in imports would either mean that Pyongyang is running out of its stock amid the regime’s efforts to increase the ration to people since this spring or that it is try to stabilize market prices,” Kwon said.

“Factoring in the forecast of good harvests for the autumn, the North is expected to enjoy a relatively stable supply of crops at least for the rest of the year,” he added.

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N. Korea’s crop imports from China hit annual high in Sept.
Yonhap
2013-10-30

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Posted in 2013 food shortage, Agriculture, Agriculture statistics, China, Food, International trade, Statistics, Trade Statistics | Comments Closed

DPRK imports of Swiss watches declines

Friday, October 25th, 2013

According to the Daily NK:

North Korea imported 386 high-end Swiss watches this year, it has been revealed.

According to the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry, mechanical and digital watches with a combined value of US$76,000 were purchased by the North in 2013.

This figure represents a 50% decrease from 2012.

“North Korea purchases a very small number of watches, as the domestic market for watches is small,” Head of the Economy and Statistics Department at the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry Philippe Pegoraro told Radio Free Asia on the 24th.

Some North Korea watchers have questioned if the reduced import volume reflects worsening economic conditions.

North Korea imported approximately 2000 Swiss watches in 2005, but this figure dropped precipitously to 26 the following year as a result of United Nations economic sanctions initiated in response to the North’s nuclear test.

Imports have been on the rise since 2007, with 450 watches imported in 2008, 660 in 2009 and 590 in 2011.

Kim Jong Eun is known to engage in “gift politics” by presenting watches and other luxury items in exchange for loyalty.

Read the full story here:
Sharp Decline in Swiss Watch Imports
Daily NK
Jin Dong Hyeok
2013-10-25

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Posted in Statistics, Switzerland, Trade Statistics | Comments Closed

Red Cross to increase aid to DPRK in 2014

Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013

According to Yonhap:

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said Wednesday that it plans to give US$7.15 million worth of aid to North Korea in 2014, up 7.8 percent from this year.

The organization also said in its updated 2012-15 long-term report that it will allocate $7.96 million for 2015 to help the communist country.

The report showed that the IFRC set aside $6.63 million to help the impoverished country this year, up from $4.40 million spent in 2012.

It said money will be spent on improving public health, sanitation and infrastructure to help the North upgrade its ability to cope with natural disasters.

The report added that Red Cross aims to help around 350,000 North Koreans who are vulnerable to disasters and poverty.

The IFRC, meanwhile, speculated that there were over 3.13 million North Koreans who were displaced form their homes, with 147 having lost their lives due to various natural disasters last year.

The North was hard hit by torrential rains and Typhoon Bolaven in the summer of 2012.

Read the full story here:
Int’l Red Cross aid to N. Korea to rise 7.8 pct in 2014
Yonhap
2013-10-23

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Posted in Foreign aid statistics, International Aid, International/Korean Red Cross, Statistics | Comments Closed

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