Pyongyang may soon request emergency food aid from the international Red Cross.

In a report released on Tuesday, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies(IFRC) said that the Red Cross Society of North Korea is reviewing a plan to request disaster relief emergency funds.

According to the IFRC, the North has been suffering from drought for several years and water shortages for agriculture will continue this year due to irregular weather patterns.

The North’s food production was estimated to have dropped to a ten-year low of four-point-95 million tons last year. More than ten million North Koreans, or 41 percent of the country’s population, suffer from nutritional deficiencies. 

The North Korean government has reportedly called for assistance from several international organizations operating within the country. Among them, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Program are carrying out a survey of North Korea’s food situation.