In my daily monitoring of North Korean news and information I come across a wide range of material, much of it reported and posted by general-interest North Korean blogs like NK News or North Korean Economy Watch.

From time-to-time I come across something that isn’t so widely publicized, usually with a tech-angle that I post on here.

Over the weekend I was catching up on some North Korean reading and came across video released by the World Food Programme of recent conditions in Anju and Wonsan. There isn’t a tech-theme to the video, but it’s unlike much of what comes out of North Korea so I thought it would be worth posting.

The video was shot in late August and released in late September.

I’ve split it up into three parts. The first focuses on destroyed crops and mud in Anju.

The second video starts off at Wonsan Pediatric Hospital with shots of malnourished babies being treated and then jumps to Wonsan secondary School where Kim Gwang Song is taking a Revolutionary Studies class, according to WFP. The boy appears to be about eight years old but, as WFP notes, he’s actually a 13-year old.

At grade four. He has some hearing difficulty. He likes sports especially running. The subject he is most interested is the history, particularly the revolutionary history of Korea. He wants to be farmer when he grows up. He wants to do some good deeds for the father land. — WFP, Sept. 19, 2012.

The final video shows production of WFP biscuits for children at Munchon Biscuit Factory in Wonsan.

In addition to one truck (7mt of capacity) and a mill, WFP provides all the raw materials (i.e. wheat flours, minerals, vitamins, oil, sugar, salt and soda) and spare parts. The government provides workers, technicians and other running costs. The biscuits are fortified with vitamins and minerals which are essential for the mental and physical growth of a child. — WFP, Sept. 16, 2012.

It closes with Wonsan Kindergarten, where children receive four of the WFP biscuits each day.