The average monthly income of North Korean defectors living in South Korea hit a record high last year, Seoul’s Ministry of Unification (MOU) said Tuesday, surpassing 2 million Korean Won (KRW) in 2019.

According to a joint press release by the MOU and other relevant authorities, the average monthly wages of workers who have defected from the North and currently live in the South increased by 148,000 KRW compared to the previous year, from approximately 1.89 million to 2.04 million KRW ($1,720).

“For the past nine years since 2011, the conditions of the North Korean defectors’ economic activity have been