Two United Nations agencies are warning that North Korea is still struggling with severe food shortages, despite enjoying its best harvest in a decade.
The World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization said Tuesday that 6.4 million North Koreans - more than a quarter of its population - will require international food aid in 2005.
The agencies also noted a sharp rise in North Korean food prices, saying the cost of rice came to about 30 percent of a typical North Korean monthly wage.
Experts blame much of the problem on Pyongyang's mismanagement of agriculture.
The World Food Program has provided more than one billion dollars in food aid to North Korea since 1995.
Some information for this report provided by Reuters.