Seoul’s vice unification minister has warned that there is “no time to lose” when it comes to reuniting divided families in the two Koreas, as data shows that thousands of South Koreans died last year without seeing their loved ones in the North.

Kim Ki-woong’s remarks in a speech to mark the Lunar New Year on Sunday, when Koreans traditionally visit their hometowns to see family, underscored separated families' diminishing hopes of meeting again as they grow older.