The North’s history of stagnant development



Analysis The North’s history of stagnant development Moving past a model that distrusted foreign ideas may be key to future success Gianluca Spezza November 12, 2014 SHARE COPY LINK FACEBOOK X LINKEDIN MASTODON Eric Lafforgue In the third year of the Kim Jong Un era, the DPRK’s domestic propaganda has been amplifying a recurring theme: scientific and technological innovation as a fast track to economic development. The first visit marking Kim Jong Un’s reappearance after a long absence from public view was to one of the new residential complexes built for scientists, and a look at DPRK media reveals that innovation in IT and science is celebrated on a regular basis. Nevertheless, the country’s economy is still in very poor shape, as progress in science and other fields seems more substantial to domestic media than © Korea Risk Group. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without prior written permission from Korea Risk Group. Get the Daily Update & Podcast Updates Start your day with the North Korea stories that matter most – as selected by Trending

Analysis

The North’s history of stagnant development

Moving past a model that distrusted foreign ideas may be key to future success

Gianluca Spezza November 12, 2014

The North’s history of stagnant development

Eric Lafforgue

In the third year of the Kim Jong Un era, the DPRK’s domestic propaganda has been amplifying a recurring theme: scientific and technological innovation as a fast track to economic development.

The first visit marking Kim Jong Un’s reappearance after a long absence from public view was to one of the new residential complexes built for scientists, and a look at DPRK media reveals that innovation in IT and science is celebrated on a regular basis.

Nevertheless, the country’s economy is still in very poor shape, as progress in science and other fields seems more substantial to domestic media than

About the Author

Gianluca Spezza

Gianluca Spezza earned his PhD in 2017 from the University of Central Lancashire under the supervision of Professor Hazel Smith, on the strength of research on the cooperation between UNICEF and the DPRK in education and childcare. Dr Spezza is an assistant professor of international relations and a senior researcher at the DPRK Strategy Center at KIMEP University in Almaty, Kazakhstan; he is writing a monograph on education, international cooperation, and human capital in North Korea (Palgrave 2021). His work on the DPRK, articles or interviews, can be found, among others, on the websites of the BBC, The Guardian, The Diplomat, IRIN News, NK News, DR.dk, Newsweek Korea, and El Confidential.

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