The North Korean regime has decided to distribute 3.300 square meters of land to every active farmer in the country. The move, decided to try to boost food production, would change the percentage of land tenure between the state and private individuals from the current 7:3 to 6:4. The transfer of land between state-run collective farms to private individuals would also allow farmers to consume 20% of the crop. Farmers will also be able to manage 40% of the harvest, while the rest will be handed over to the government.
North Korea has finally promised to distribute seeds, fertilizers and equipment for working in the fields. Since 2012, the North Korean regime has allowed collective farms to delay paying in-kind loans for land, fertilizer, and irrigation when they reach their production quota, but farmers have complained that the quota available to them was too small.
"Now anyone can buy the equivalent of a plot of land for 300 yuan (or 50 won, the South Korean currency) where they can build a house or farm," a source explained. The change is seen as positive by Cho Bong-hyun of South Korea's IBK Economic Research Institute.
