A report "North Korea’s Special Economic Zones: Plans vs. Progress" published on 23 November 2015 on a website 36 North of the U.S.-Korea Institute (USKI) at SAIS provides some latest information on these Zones in the DPRK. The website is part of an extensive program launched in 2006 to make the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University, a hub of Korea-related activities in the Washington, DC area, and to increase information and understanding of Korea and Korean affairs.
Another report on Mail Online dated 26 November 2016 shows interesting photos of the top 10% elite in North Korea with a relatively affluent life-style.
These update my following post dated 19 December 2015:
"Yazhou Zhoukan , Chinese-language Asia Weekly, (20 December, 2015, p.16-17) reported on the construction of various special economic zones in North Korea largely with the help of China’s capital and engineering teams. Download North Korea building SEZs
At the north-west border with China near Dandong City, the Sinuiju Special Economic Zone 新义州经济特区, shelved in 2002 due to tax evasion and other charges, is apparently being revived. This promises to become North Korea’s largest export base, comprising a total area of 132 sq.km to include clusters of textiles manufacturing, tourism and commercial facilities. A 40,000 sq.m. Sinuiju International Exchange complex is reported to have been completed, ready for occupation next year. A cooperation agreement was signed during China’s Politburo Standing Committee Member Liu Yunshan’s recent visit.
Another large development zone is the Rason Special Economic Zone 罗津先锋经济特区 around the Rajin Port at the eastern tip. It is said to comprise a dozen sectors including agriculture, logistics, light manufacturing, oil refinery and eco-tourism.
There is also a host of infrastructural projects vaulted to build some 3,000 km of expressways and 3,500 km of modern rail.
Total investments are reported to number billions of dollars, although the figures quoted in the article, up to $400 billion, appear too large to be credible.
If true, these facilities could well signal that a new North Korea, tilted towards both economic and military development, may well emerge. This may augur well for North Korea’s eventual development into a less insecure nation relying solely on nuclear threats to prop up its regime. After all, Vietnam’s transformation from a closed communist state to a modern vibrant economy is instructive."
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