As many as 18 million North Koreans remained food insecure in 2015, the same amount in the prior year, according to the 2016 DPRK: Needs and Assessments report published on April 19.

The report, which is published on behalf of the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) comprising of the UN Country Team and other partners, also reported a decrease of 11 percent in domestic grain production from 2014.

“From a population of 24.9 million, 70 per cent of DPRK’s population, or 18 million people, are vulnerable to shortages in food production,” the report read.

In reference to grain production it said the