Pyongyang residents receive bags of fish at a state-run store on Dec. 21, 2021, after leader Kim Jong Un ordered thousands of tons of fish distributed to the capital. Photo: Rodong Sinmun/News1 Fishers operating out of Chongjin in North Hamgyong province are struggling to make ends meet during the peak squid season after the state expanded mandatory catch quotas, requiring registered fishing vessels to hand over 80% of their haul to state-run fishery management offices. The squeeze is severe enough that crew members working pre-dawn shifts at sea are sometimes returning with fewer than five squid to show for their labor. A source in North Hamgyong province told Daily NK on Monday that private fishing boats registered with the Ryongam Fishery Management Office in Chongjin have been heading out before dawn to fish during the current squid season. Under state policy, all vessels registered with a state fishery office must...

A classroom at a North Korean school. (DPRK Today) North Korea introduced an elective subject system in its senior middle schools — the equivalent of high schools — this year, but the reform has triggered significant disruption on the ground, with teachers resisting reassignment orders and specialist training falling critically short, a source told Daily NK on Tuesday.  A source in North Hamgyong province said an English teacher at a senior middle school in Songphyong district, Chongjin, was called to a staff meeting earlier this month and subjected to sharp public criticism after refusing orders to transfer to a school on the outskirts of the district. The teacher had declared they would rather be dismissed than accept the posting. Senior middle schools are six-year secondary institutions serving students roughly aged 13 to 18. The new elective system, introduced in 2026, divides the curriculum into specialized subject tracks and requires dedicated...

Apartment buildings in Pyongyang. (Todd Mecklem, Creative Commons, Flickr) North Koreans in major cities are increasingly turning away from traditional single-story homes in favor of apartment buildings, particularly those with staffed security guard posts at building entrances, as rising crime and soaring heating fuel costs make standalone housing feel both dangerous and unaffordable. The trend is most visible in Chongjin in North Hamgyong province and Sinuiju in North Pyongan province. A source in North Hamgyong province told Daily NK on Monday that upscale apartment buildings in Chongjin now routinely station guards at each building entrance to screen visitors, log residents’ movements, and block unauthorized access. Residents are not only tolerating this level of surveillance but actively demanding it. The guard post system, once a discreet feature of a handful of premium buildings, has become a standard selling point for desirable apartment units. The security dimension reflects a broader deterioration in...

A North Korean vehicle travels through Dandong, Liaoning province, China, in February 2019. Photo: Daily NK A surge in used vehicle imports over the past several years has sparked a booming auto repair industry across North Korea, with dedicated repair districts taking shape in major cities as aging cars generate a steady flow of maintenance work. A source in North Pyongan province said Tuesday that trade-linked organizations in Sinuiju have been steadily increasing imports of vehicle parts, including tires, hydraulic pistons, and engine piston rings, to meet growing repair demand. The flow of Chinese-manufactured used vehicles into North Korea has left the domestic fleet heavily aged, producing frequent breakdowns and a brisk market for repair services and spare parts. Repair work now encompasses welding, component grinding and fabrication, bodywork, painting, and engine overhaul. While some demand for vehicle repair has always existed, tied to state enterprise fleets and privately operated...

FILE PHOTO: A scene from Rason Market in North Hamgyong province. (Daily NK) North Korea’s Cabinet issued an emergency order on May 12, 2026, capping rice prices in the country’s markets, but the move has driven traders underground and made rice harder to find than before. A source in North Pyongan province said the Cabinet directed provincial people’s committees — the local administrative bodies responsible for overseeing regional governance — nationwide to prevent market vendors from charging above a government-set price ceiling for food. The directive came as rice prices surged well past 30,000 North Korean won per kilogram in markets across the country. According to Daily NK’s regular market price monitoring, rice had already crossed the 30,000-won threshold last month. As of May 10, one kilogram of rice was selling for 32,600 won in Sinuiju markets. That figure represents a roughly 3.5-fold increase from the same period last year,...

Workers display freshly harvested greens inside a hydroponic greenhouse at the Sinuiju Comprehensive Greenhouse Farm. Rodong Sinmun reported on Feb. 28, 2026 that the ruling Workers’ Party had transformed what was once a disaster-prone island into a showcase agricultural site. Photo: Rodong Sinmun/News1 North Korean trading companies are actively canvassing Chinese buyers for fresh vegetables and fruit produced at the Sinuiju Comprehensive Greenhouse Farm, a massive agricultural complex that opened earlier this year near the Chinese border. The effort reflects a broader push to diversify exports and accumulate foreign currency as North Korea-China border trade continues its post-pandemic recovery. A Daily NK source said Monday that trading company representatives have been approaching Chinese trading partners in the Dandong area and pitching Sinuiju Comprehensive Greenhouse Farm produce as pesticide-free and available in large quantities. The product lineup includes perilla leaves, lettuce, chicory, cabbage, chili peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, and oriental melon. The...

A view of apartment buildings in Hyesan, the capital of Ryanggang province, North Korea, photographed in August 2018. Photo: Daily NK Wealthy entrepreneurs in North Korea are buying adjacent apartment units and converting them into private duplexes, a trend driven less by lifestyle aspiration than by fear that accumulated cash could be seized by the state at any moment, Daily NK has learned. The pattern, observed in Hyesan, the capital of Ryanggang province, points to a deepening shift in how North Korea’s moneyed class manages and conceals its assets. A source in Ryanggang province told Daily NK on Friday that donju (North Korea’s class of private entrepreneurs and moneyed traders) in Hyesan have been simultaneously purchasing upper and lower floors of upscale apartment buildings and connecting them with interior staircases to create two-story private residences. The apartments involved in these conversions are high-end units priced above 300,000 Chinese yuan (approximately...

Students from the Mangyongdae Schoolchildren’s Palace arts performance group perform at a concert marking the 84th birthday of late leader Kim Jong Il on Feb. 13, 2026. Photo: Rodong Sinmun/News1 Some North Korean students in North Pyongan province are skipping compulsory farm labor duty this rice-planting season by securing enrollment in school arts performance groups, and their parents are using the free time to double down on private music and vocal lessons. The trend offers a rare window into how wealthier North Korean families navigate the state’s mobilization system while quietly investing in their children’s futures. A source in North Pyongan province told Daily NK on Monday that schools in Pihyon county are currently exempting students who participate in school arts performance groups from the general farm mobilization order, citing performance preparation as justification. In North Korea, these school-based arts groups serve as the primary pipeline for students pursuing careers...

Moranbong No. 1 Middle School in Pyongyang. Photo: Rodong Sinmun North Korea’s Ministry of Education has singled out North Hamgyong province for a sweeping anti-corruption drive after the province posted some of the country’s worst results in a national student talent competition held in April 2026. Officials blame the poor performance on pervasive bribery in provincial schools, but teachers on the ground say the crackdown ignores the punishing conditions they work under and are now talking about leaving the profession altogether. A source in North Hamgyong province told Daily NK on Monday that a nationwide talent selection competition for senior middle school students (the North Korean equivalent of high school) ran from April 5 to 23, with results announced in early May. North Hamgyong placed near the bottom of the national rankings. The ministry responded with a sharp rebuke, reportedly asking whether “all of North Hamgyong’s gifted students had simply...

Medicinal plants on offer at a health food store in Pyongyang. Image: Daily NK North Korea has mobilized medical students at universities across North Pyongan province to collect medicinal herbs, drafting them into a state-driven push to expand production of koryo medicine (traditional Korean herbal medicine) amid chronic shortages of modern pharmaceuticals. A Daily NK source in North Pyongan province said Wednesday that students at Sinuiju Medical University and other health-related institutions in the province have been sent out to gather herbs since late April, with the designated “herb collection period” running through mid-May. Medical universities and affiliated institutions maintain their own herb gardens and conduct collection drives every spring and autumn. According to the source, schools are framing the mobilization as “field practice” while cutting regular classes to send students out in large numbers to mountains and fields. The mobilization follows a clear division of labor by year of...