North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made his first public appearance in over a month to visit a construction site in a city near the border with China. 

The North's official Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said on Tuesday that Kim visited Samjiyon City and conducted the inspection to be briefed on the state of the three-stage development project.

The KCNA said Kim looked around houses, educational and cultural facilities under construction and issued orders on urban management and farming. 

The visit marks Kim's first public appearance reported by the North's state media in 35 days after he delivered a speech at a defense exhibition on October 12.  

Samjiyon is located at the foot of Mount Baekdu, the highest peak on the Korean Peninsula, and known to be the birthplace of Kim's late father and former leader Kim Jong-il. North Korea has been developing the area since 2018 on Kim's order.   

Thousands of houses have reportedly been built in the first and second phase of the project, with Samjiyon County elevated to Samjiyon City in late 2019 at the completion of the second stage.