UN Ready To Send Aid To North Korea
Komfie Manalo - All Headline News Foreign Correspondent Seoul, South Korea (AHN) - Aid and relief workers from the UN World Food Program said on Monday they are awaiting word from Pyongyang to allow them to enter the impoverished country and distribute food aid following widespread flooding that damaged most of the country's agriculture. Analysts fear of an impending famine if the food shortage in North Korea is not immediately addressed. Paul Risely, regional spokesman of the UN food agency said, "There is a critical need for immediate food distribution. We are still waiting confirmation from the government that will allow us to distribute food." Figures released by Pyongyang showed hundreds were killed or missing following the two recent storms which lashed the country. The WFP estimates that 60,000 people were made homeless or displaced. Risely said some 75 tons of food capable of feeding at least 13,000 people are currently ready for distribution to Songchon province, one of the hardest hit areas. But the WFP wants to conduct a full assessment of the damage to determine particular needs of North Korea and then monitor the distribution of the food to ensure it gets to the people who needs it most. The agency estimates that 2.5 million of 10 percent of North Korea's population died of starvation in the 1990s because of drought, flooding and mismanagement of the agriculture sector.
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