North Korea Democratic People's Republic of Korea | ![]() |
---|---|
Status | Independent State |
Social and Moral Index | 176th best |
Capital | Pyongyang |
Land Area | 120 410km21 |
Location | Asia |
Population | 25.5m2 |
Life Expectancy | 70.52yrs (2017)3 |
GNI | |
ISO3166-1 Codes | KP, PRK, 4084 |
Internet Domain | .kp5 |
Currency | Won (KPW)6 |
Telephone | +8507 |
“An independent kingdom for much of its long history, Korea was occupied by Japan beginning in 1905 following the Russo-Japanese War. Five years later, Japan formally annexed the entire peninsula. Following World War II, Korea was split with the northern half coming under Soviet-sponsored Communist control. After failing in the Korean War (1950-53) to conquer the US-backed Republic of Korea (ROK) in the southern portion by force, North Korea (DPRK), under its founder President KIM Il Sung, adopted a policy of ostensible diplomatic and economic "self-reliance" as a check against outside influence. The DPRK demonized the US as the ultimate threat to its social system through state-funded propaganda, and molded political, economic, and military policies around the core ideological objective of eventual unification of Korea under Pyongyang's control. KIM Il Sung's son, KIM Jong Il, was officially designated as his father's successor in 1980, assuming a growing political and managerial role until the elder KIM's death in 1994. KIM Jong Un was publicly unveiled as his father's successor in September 2010. Following KIM Jong Il's death in December 2011, the regime began to take actions to transfer power to KIM Jong Un and KIM has now assumed many his father's former titles and duties. After decades of economic mismanagement and resource misallocation, the DPRK since the mid-1990s has relied heavily on international aid to feed its population. The DPRK began to ease restrictions to allow semi-private markets, starting in 2002, but then sought to roll back the scale of economic reforms in 2005 and 2009. North Korea's history of regional military provocations; proliferation of military-related items; long-range missile development; WMD programs including tests of nuclear devices in 2006, 2009, and 2013; and massive conventional armed forces are of major concern to the international community.”
CIA's The World Factbook (2013)8
“Most people form their opinions of North Korea from news reports and James Bond movies, but there´s more to the Democratic People´s Republic than military parades and stand-offs with the UN. No country in the world provokes a similar reaction to North Korea. Now on its third hereditary ruler, this nominally communist state and by-product of the Cold War has defied all expectation and survived a quarter of a century since perestroika dismantled the rest of the once-vast Soviet empire.
Most people don´t even know that it´s possible to travel here, and indeed the compromises required to do so are significant. You´ll be accompanied by two government minders at all times and only hear a one-sided account of history. Those who can´t accept this might be better off staying away - but those who can will have a fascinating trip into another, unsettling world.
With your official minders, you can roam mountain resorts and ancient capitals, though the main attractions remain the bombastic iconography of the North Korean regime and the surreal existence of ordinary people in this troubled, autocratic state.”
Social & Moral Development Index10,11 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better Avg Rank10,11 | |
1 | Norway | 30.8 |
2 | Denmark | 31.8 |
3 | Sweden | 33.9 |
... | ||
173 | Guinea-Bissau | 119.3 |
174 | Zimbabwe | 119.8 |
175 | Syria | 120.4 |
176 | N. Korea | 120.9 |
177 | Papua New Guinea | 121.7 |
178 | Solomon Islands | 122.2 |
179 | Congo, (Brazzaville) | 122.3 |
180 | Sudan | 122.5 |
World Avg | 88.0 | |
q=195. |
The Social and Moral Development Index concentrates on moral issues and human rights, violence, public health, equality, tolerance, freedom and effectiveness in climate change mitigation and environmentalism, and on some technological issues. A country scores higher for achieving well in those areas, and for sustaining that achievement in the long term. Those countries towards the top of this index can truly said to be setting good examples and leading humankind onwards into a bright, humane, and free future. See: Which are the Best Countries in the World? The Social and Moral Development Index.
#birth_control #demographics #health #immigration #life_expectancy #longevity #migration #overpopulation #population
Population:
North Korea's population is predicted to rise to 26.18 million by 2030. This rise is despite a low fertility rate, meaning, that this country is helping to alleviate problems with growing population in neighbouring countries by accepting immigrants, very likely as a requirement of maintaining an active workforce. This country has a fertility rate of 2.00. The fertility rate is, in simple terms, the average amount of children that each woman has. The higher the figure, the quicker the population is growing, although, to calculate the rate you also need to take into account morbidity, i.e., the rate at which people die. If people live healthy and long lives and morbidity is low, then, 2.0 approximates to the replacement rate, which would keep the population stable. If all countries had such a fertility rate, population growth would end. The actual replacement rate in most developed countries is around 2.1.Population (2018)2 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Population2 | |
1 | China | 1.4b |
2 | India | 1.4b |
3 | USA | 327.1m |
... | ||
49 | Yemen | 28.5m |
50 | Nepal | 28.1m |
51 | Madagascar | 26.3m |
52 | N. Korea | 25.5m |
53 | Cameroon | 25.2m |
54 | Ivory Coast | 25.1m |
55 | Australia | 24.9m |
56 | Niger | 22.4m |
World Avg | 39.0m | |
q=195. |
Life Expectancy (2015)12 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better Years12 | |
1 | Hong Kong | 84.16 |
2 | Japan | 83.68 |
3 | Italy | 83.34 |
... | ||
111 | Ukraine | 71.13 |
112 | Azerbaijan | 70.90 |
113 | Kyrgyzstan | 70.79 |
114 | N. Korea | 70.52 |
115 | Trinidad & Tobago | 70.52 |
116 | Russia | 70.26 |
117 | Fiji | 70.15 |
118 | Belize | 70.08 |
World Avg | 71.27 | |
q=190. |
Fertility Rate (2013)13 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | 2.0 is best13 | |
1 | N. Korea | 2.00 |
2 | Brunei | 1.99 |
3 | St Vincent & Grenadines | 2.01 |
4 | France | 1.99 |
5 | Turkey | 2.04 |
6 | Australia | 1.96 |
7 | Uruguay | 2.05 |
8 | Norway | 1.95 |
9 | Myanmar (Burma) | 1.95 |
10 | Indonesia | 2.07 |
11 | Sweden | 1.93 |
12 | Tunisia | 1.93 |
World Avg | 2.81 | |
q=180. |
Old-Age Dependency Ratio (2016)14 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better Per 10014 | |
1 | Uganda | 04.3 |
2 | Mali | 04.5 |
3 | Chad | 04.7 |
... | ||
107 | Brunei | 16.2 |
108 | El Salvador | 17.3 |
109 | Panama | 17.7 |
110 | N. Korea | 17.8 |
111 | Turkey | 18.0 |
112 | Vietnam | 18.3 |
113 | Tunisia | 18.6 |
114 | Azerbaijan | 18.7 |
World Avg | 18.3 | |
q=185. |
Migration:
Immigrants (2017)15 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | %15 | |
1 | UAE | 88.4% |
2 | Kuwait | 75.5% |
3 | Qatar | 65.2% |
... | ||
185 | Colombia | 0.3% |
186 | Morocco | 0.3% |
187 | Philippines | 0.2% |
188 | N. Korea | 0.2% |
189 | Sri Lanka | 0.2% |
190 | Myanmar (Burma) | 0.1% |
191 | Madagascar | 0.1% |
192 | Indonesia | 0.1% |
World Avg | 9.4% | |
q=195. |
Emigrants (2010)16 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | %16 | |
1 | Dominica | 104.8% |
2 | Palestine | 68.4% |
3 | Samoa | 67.3% |
... | ||
166 | Cameroon | 1.4% |
167 | Malawi | 1.4% |
168 | Congo, DR | 1.3% |
169 | N. Korea | 1.3% |
170 | Thailand | 1.2% |
171 | UAE | 1.2% |
172 | Mongolia | 1.2% |
173 | Kenya | 1.1% |
World Avg | 11.5% | |
q=192. |
#equality #freedom #human_rights #morals #north_korea #politics #prejudice #tolerance
Human Rights, Equality & Tolerance (2020)17,18 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better Avg Rank17,18 | |
1 | Sweden | 9.9 |
2 | Denmark | 14.7 |
3 | Norway | 15.5 |
... | ||
189 | Swaziland | 142.0 |
190 | Cook Islands | 144.5 |
191 | Mauritania | 144.7 |
192 | N. Korea | 146.8 |
193 | Pakistan | 147.0 |
194 | Brunei | 147.1 |
195 | Sudan | 148.8 |
196 | Tuvalu | 158.8 |
q=199. |
This is a fully totalitarian dictatorship with no pretence to embrace any modern concept of human rights nor personal freedom19,20. N. Korea does worse than average when it comes to LGBT equality21 and in speed of uptake of HR treaties22. It falls into the worst 20 in terms of commentary in Human Rights Watch reports23 (one of the worst in Asia), its nominal commitment to Human Rights24 and in freethought25 (one of the worst in Asia). And finally, it is second-from-the-bottom in supporting press freedom26. Of the millions of North Koreans subject to slavery, the "clear majority" are being held in forced labour by the state itself27. The Lonely Planet guide for traveller says that visiting North Korea is "a fascinating trip into another, unsettling world... with your official minders, you can roam mountain resorts and ancient capitals, though the main attractions remain the bombastic iconography of the North Korean regime and the surreal existence of ordinary people in this troubled, autocratic state"9.
For tables, charts and commentary, see:
#alcohol #birth_control #demographics #health #life_expectancy #longevity #North_Korea #obesity #overpopulation #parenting #population #smoking #vaccines
Health (2020)28,29 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better Avg Rank28,29 | |
1 | Hong Kong | 18.0 |
2 | Singapore | 41.5 |
3 | Maldives | 43.3 |
... | ||
16 | Italy | 66.4 |
17 | Bangladesh | 68.5 |
18 | Spain | 69.1 |
19 | N. Korea | 69.6 |
20 | Thailand | 70.4 |
21 | Qatar | 71.1 |
22 | Uzbekistan | 71.1 |
23 | Portugal | 71.5 |
24 | Kuwait | 72.3 |
World Avg | 92.3 | |
q=187. |
The countries with the best overall approach to public health, in terms of both public policy and individual lifestyle choices, are Hong Kong, Singapore and The Maldives28. These countries are worth emulating. And, although often through no fault of the average citizen, the worst countries are S. Sudan, Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea28.
The data sets used to calculate points for each country are its average life expectancy, its alcohol consumption rate, its fertility rate, its smoking rate, its suicide rate, its food aid and health contributions and WHO compliance, the prevalence of overweight adults, its adolescent birth rate and its immunizations take-up. The regions with the best average results per country are Scandinavia, Asia and Europe28, whereas the worst are Africa, Micronesia and Polynesia28.
For more, see:
Health:
North Korea does relatively well in encouraging good health, compared to many other countries. N. Korea performs the best in its adolescent birth rate30. It does better than average in its fertility rate13, its alcohol consumption rate31 (but bad for Asia) and in its immunizations take-up32 (but bad for Asia). N. Korea does not succeed in everything, however. It does worse than average when it comes to its smoking rate33 (still good for Asia) and in its average life expectancy12. The prevalence of overweight adults has increased by 14% during the last 40 years.Life Expectancy (2015)12 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better Years12 | |
1 | Hong Kong | 84.16 |
2 | Japan | 83.68 |
3 | Italy | 83.34 |
... | ||
111 | Ukraine | 71.13 |
112 | Azerbaijan | 70.90 |
113 | Kyrgyzstan | 70.79 |
114 | N. Korea | 70.52 |
115 | Trinidad & Tobago | 70.52 |
116 | Russia | 70.26 |
117 | Fiji | 70.15 |
118 | Belize | 70.08 |
World Avg | 71.27 | |
q=190. |
Alcohol Consumption (2016)31 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better Per Capita31 | |
1 | Bangladesh | 0.0 |
2 | Kuwait | 0.0 |
3 | Libya | 0.0 |
... | ||
65 | Gambia | 3.8 |
66 | Israel | 3.8 |
67 | UAE | 3.8 |
68 | N. Korea | 3.9 |
69 | Honduras | 4.0 |
70 | Jamaica | 4.2 |
71 | Sri Lanka | 4.3 |
72 | Bahamas | 4.4 |
World Avg | 6.2 | |
q=189. |
Fertility Rate (2013)13 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | 2.0 is best13 | |
1 | N. Korea | 2.00 |
2 | Brunei | 1.99 |
3 | St Vincent & Grenadines | 2.01 |
4 | France | 1.99 |
5 | Turkey | 2.04 |
6 | Australia | 1.96 |
7 | Uruguay | 2.05 |
8 | Norway | 1.95 |
9 | Myanmar (Burma) | 1.95 |
10 | Indonesia | 2.07 |
11 | Sweden | 1.93 |
12 | Tunisia | 1.93 |
World Avg | 2.81 | |
q=180. |
Smoking Rates (2014)33 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is worse33 | |
182 | Montenegro | 4 125 |
181 | Belarus | 3 831 |
180 | Lebanon | 3 023 |
... | ||
100 | Equatorial Guinea | 649 |
99 | Cambodia | 645 |
98 | Fiji | 618 |
97 | N. Korea | 610 |
96 | Jamaica | 593 |
95 | Seychelles | 590 |
94 | Malaysia | 584 |
93 | Oman | 577 |
World Avg | 819 | |
q=182. |
Overweight Adults (2016)34 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better %34 | |
1 | Vietnam | 18.3 |
2 | India | 19.7 |
3 | Bangladesh | 20.0 |
... | ||
52 | Ghana | 32.0 |
53 | China | 32.3 |
54 | Mauritius | 32.3 |
55 | N. Korea | 32.4 |
56 | Thailand | 32.6 |
57 | Cameroon | 33.6 |
58 | Mauritania | 34.4 |
59 | Cape Verde | 34.8 |
World Avg | 49.0 | |
q=191. |
Children's Health:
Adolescent Birth Rate (2015)30 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better Per 100030 | |
1 | N. Korea | 0.5 |
2 | S. Korea | 1.6 |
3 | Switzerland | 2.9 |
4 | Hong Kong | 3.2 |
5 | Slovenia | 3.8 |
6 | Singapore | 3.8 |
7 | Netherlands | 4.0 |
8 | Denmark | 4.0 |
9 | Japan | 4.1 |
10 | Cyprus | 5.0 |
11 | Sweden | 5.7 |
12 | Norway | 5.9 |
World Avg | 47.9 | |
q=185. |
Infant Immunizations 2011-2015 (2015)32 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better Avg %32 | |
1 | Hungary | 99.0 |
2 | China | 99.0 |
3 | Uzbekistan | 98.9 |
... | ||
82 | Germany | 94.0 |
83 | Lithuania | 93.9 |
84 | Estonia | 93.9 |
85 | N. Korea | 93.8 |
86 | Italy | 93.8 |
87 | Austria | 93.8 |
88 | Argentina | 93.7 |
89 | Bulgaria | 93.7 |
World Avg | 88.3 | |
q=194. |
Modernity and Education:
Length of Schooling (2018)35 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better Years35 | |
1 | Australia | 22.1 |
2 | Belgium | 19.7 |
3 | Finland | 19.3 |
... | ||
154 | Laos | 11.1 |
155 | Malawi | 11.0 |
156 | Turkmenistan | 10.9 |
157 | N. Korea | 10.8 |
158 | Lesotho | 10.7 |
159 | Guatemala | 10.6 |
160 | Guinea-Bissau | 10.5 |
161 | Zimbabwe | 10.5 |
World Avg | 13.2 | |
q=193. |
Corruption (2012-2016)36 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better Avg Score36 | |
1 | Denmark | 90.8 |
2 | New Zealand | 90.6 |
3 | Finland | 89.4 |
... | ||
169 | Turkmenistan | 18.2 |
170 | Libya | 16.8 |
171 | Iraq | 16.6 |
172 | S. Sudan | 13.8 |
173 | Sudan | 12.2 |
174 | Afghanistan | 10.8 |
175 | N. Korea | 08.8 |
176 | Somalia | 08.4 |
World Avg | 43.05 | |
q=176. |
#human_development #peace #politics
Global Peace Index (2021)37 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Lower is better37 | |
1 | Iceland | 1.10 |
2 | New Zealand | 1.25 |
3 | Denmark | 1.26 |
... | ||
148 | Mali | 2.81 |
149 | Turkey | 2.84 |
150 | Pakistan | 2.87 |
151 | N. Korea | 2.92 |
152 | Venezuela | 2.93 |
153 | Sudan | 2.94 |
154 | Russia | 2.99 |
155 | Central African Rep. | 3.13 |
World Avg | 2.08 | |
q=163. |
#biodiversity #climate_change #deforestation #over-exploitation #the_environment
Forest Area Change 1990-2015 (2015)38 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better %38 | |
1 | Iceland | +205.6 |
2 | Bahrain | +144.4 |
3 | Uruguay | +131.3 |
... | ||
174 | Nicaragua | -31.0 |
175 | Zimbabwe | -36.6 |
176 | Sudan | -37.5 |
177 | N. Korea | -38.7 |
178 | Niger | -41.3 |
179 | Pakistan | -41.7 |
180 | Honduras | -43.6 |
181 | Mauritania | -45.9 |
World Avg | +02.8 | |
q=184. |
Environmental Performance (2018)39 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is better39 | |
1 | Switzerland | 87.4 |
2 | France | 84.0 |
3 | Denmark | 81.6 |
4 | Malta | 80.9 |
5 | Sweden | 80.5 |
6 | UK | 79.9 |
7 | Luxembourg | 79.1 |
8 | Austria | 79.0 |
9 | Ireland | 78.8 |
10 | Finland | 78.6 |
11 | Iceland | 78.6 |
12 | Spain | 78.4 |
World Avg | 56.4 | |
q=180. |
Convention on Biological Diversity | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Earlier is better Signed | |
1 | China | 1993 Dec 29 |
2 | Guinea | 1993 Dec 29 |
3 | Cook Islands | 1993 Dec 29 |
... | ||
92 | Bolivia | 1995 Jan 01 |
93 | Senegal | 1995 Jan 15 |
94 | Cameroon | 1995 Jan 17 |
95 | N. Korea | 1995 Jan 24 |
96 | San Marino | 1995 Jan 26 |
97 | Swaziland | 1995 Feb 07 |
98 | Zimbabwe | 1995 Feb 09 |
99 | Vietnam | 1995 Feb 14 |
World Avg | 1899 Dec 30 | |
q=197. |
#health #inequality #life_expectancy
Inequality in Life Expectancy (2019)40 | ||
---|---|---|
Pos. | Higher is worse40 | |
184 | Chad | 40.90 |
183 | Central African Rep. | 40.10 |
182 | Sierra Leone | 39.00 |
... | ||
95 | Panama | 12.00 |
94 | Egypt | 11.60 |
93 | Ecuador | 11.50 |
92 | N. Korea | 11.50 |
91 | Kyrgyzstan | 11.30 |
90 | St Vincent & Grenadines | 11.30 |
89 | Grenada | 11.20 |
88 | Belize | 11.10 |
World Avg | 14.59 | |
q=184. |
#buddhism #christianity #hinduism #islam #judaism
Data from the Pew Forum, a professional polling outfit, states that in 2010 the religious makeup of this country was as follows in the table below41:
Christian | 2% |
Muslim | 0.1% |
Hindu | 0.1% |
Buddhist | 1.5% |
Folk Religion | 12.3% |
Jew | 0.1% |
Unaffiliated | 71.3% |
The CIA World Factbook has slightly different data, and states: traditionally Buddhist and Confucianist, some Christian and syncretic Chondogyo (Religion of the Heavenly Way). note: autonomous religious activities now almost nonexistent; government-sponsored religious groups exist to provide illusion of religious freedom42.
Links: