North Korea’s leader owns up to economic failures

NORTH KOREAN leader Kim Jong Un opened his country’s first ruling party congress in five years with an admission of policy failures and a vow to set new developmental goals, state media has reported.

The Workers’ Party Congress met in Pyongyang on Tuesday with thousands of delegates and observers in attendance, the Korean Central News Agency ( KCNA) reported.

In his opening speech, KCNA cited Mr Kim as saying the developmental goals set in a 2016 congress “were not met in almost all areas to a great extent.

“We should further promote and expand the successes and victories that we’ve achieved through our painstaking efforts but prevent us from having the painful lessons again,” he said.

While underlining the need to start the work to develop the economy under a new fiveyear plan, Mr Kim reviewed the present status of North Korea’s metal, chemical, electric and other key industries and set unspecified tasks for future development, according to KCNA.

This year’s congress comes as Mr Kim faces the toughest challenge of his nine- year rule because of what he has called “multiple crises” – an economy hammered by pandemic- caused border closings, a series of natural disasters last summer and persistent US- led sanctions.

Mr Kim described the difficulties as “the worst of all” and “unprecedented”.

He is also likely to see US policy change under President- elect Joe Biden, who unlike President Donald Trump is expected to avoid top- down summit diplomacy with him and maintain punishing sanctions on the North, unless Mr Kim takes significant steps toward denuclearisation.

Officially, the congress is the party’s top decisionmaking body, though key day- to- day decisions are made by Mr Kim and his inner circle.

The congress would still provide Mr Kim with a chance to solidify his authority by announcing new goals, naming loyal lieutenants to top posts and calling for stronger unity.

North Korea’s year- long closure of its border with China, its biggest trading partner, to guard against Covid- 19 is taking a heavy toll. Experts say North Korea has no other option but to maintain its border closure, because its public health care system remains broken and an outbreak would have dire consequence.