UN organizations say North Korea will need more than one-point-three million tons of food aid this year.  

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO) and World Food Program(WFP) announced on Friday the results of a joint survey conducted by inspectors that visited North Korea between March 29th and April 12th. They estimate the North’s food production fell to a ten-year low last year of four-point-nine million tons. 

They concluded the North needs one-point-59 million tons for this year, but can only cover 200-thousand tons of that through planned imports while securing 21-thousand-200 tons from international organizations so far. 

Based on their assessment, around ten-point-one million North Koreans, or around 40 percent of the country’s population, are suffering nutritional deficiencies. Daily food rations from the regime were estimated to have been reduced from 380 grams per person last year to 300 grams and could decline further in the July-September period. 

The agencies called on the international community to provide further assistance to the North, warning several million more North Koreans will starve without humanitarian assistance.