Former chief of nutrition of the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) Patrick Webb on Friday cited North Korea as an example of why food aid and development aid should not be divided into separate issues.

"Is North Korea an emergency situation, or is it a development situation?" asked Webb at a seminar sponsored by the Center for Global Development. The WFP established 19 food-producing factories in North Korea with agricultural technology provided through food aid, according to Webb.

He said, "To me, that's development, ensuring skills and technological capabilities necessary for future development. And yet, those things were done in the context of a so-called emergency."

Webb contends that there is an artificial line between relief and development, saying that the focus should be placed on the benefits provided to the aid recipient.

The WFP has been leading food aid efforts in North Korea for the past decade, but has suspended food distribution operations at the request of Pyongyang, which has asked for more developmental aid instead. WFP director James Morris will visit Pyongyang next week to discuss the future of WFP operations.