North Korea Facts

by countryaah · Published June 3, 2019 · Updated April 26, 2020

North Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, State of East Asia; 120 540 km², 25.5 million residents (2019).North Korea lies between the Yellow Sea to the west and the Japanese Sea to the east. It occupies about 55 percent of the Korean Peninsula and is separated from South Korea by a 4 km wide demilitarized zone. In the north, the highest parts of the Changbai Mountains, the Yalu River and the Tumen River form a natural border with China, and along lower Tumen, North Korea has a short border with the Russian Federation in the northeast. The capital is Pyongyang (3.4 million residents, 2012).

Country facts

Choson Minjujuni Inmin Konghwaguk / Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
Country abbreviation: KP
Area: 120 540 km²
Population (2019): 25.5 million residents
Capital: Pyongyang
Main language: Korean
State: Republic
Head of State: Kim Jong Un
Head of Government: Pak Pong Ju
GDP per capita: no data available
GNI percapita: no information available
Currency unit: 1 North Korean won = 100 chon
Currency code: KPW
Country number (telephony): 850
Internet domain name: kp
Time difference compared to Sweden: +7.5
National Day: September 9 (Proclamation of the Republic, 1948)

Nature

Land use: forest (61%), agricultural land (17%), other (22%)
Highest mountain: Paektusan (2,744 m above sea level)

Population

Population density (2019): 211 residents per km²
Natural population growth (2019): 0.5%; birth rate 14 ‰, death rate 9 ‰
Age structure (2019): 0-14 years (20%), 15-64 (70%), 65- (10%)
Life expectancy (2019): men 68 years, women 76 years
Infant mortality (2019): 12 per 1,000 live births
Population forecast 2050: 27 million residents
HDI: no data available
Urbanization rate (2019): 62%
Most populous cities (2012): Pyongyang (3.4 million residents), Hamhung – Hungnam (966,600)

Business

Industry’s contribution to GDP (2017): agriculture (22%), industry (48%), service (30%)
Exports (2017): US $ 4,582 million
Main export products: iron, steel, textiles
Main exporting countries: China
Imports (2017): US $ 4 375 million
Main import products: oil, coal, means of transport
Main importing countries: China
Railway network (2014): 7,400 km

North Korea is highland and mountainous, especially in the north and east. To the south extends the Nangnimber Mountains, which continues into South Korea. The western part of the country is partly smooth and rolling country and has a heavily fragmented coast with a large number of islands facing the Gulf of Korea to the west. The country has a monsoon-influenced, temperate climate. The rainfall is most abundant during the summer.

North Korea is a Socialist People’s Republic with the Communist Party (Korean Workers’ Party) as the leading political force. Although a parliament, the People’s Assembly, exists, the real power lies with the Communist Party. Kim Il Sung formulated the so-called juche ideology, a development and application of Marxism-Leninism to the conditions in North Korea. Since 1972, this has been enshrined in the Constitution as a leading political ideology. North Korea was formed in 1948.

The country is one of the world’s most centrally planned states. Business is characterized by a large, heavy industry and an outdated and inefficient agriculture. Recurring floods since the 1990s followed by severe drought in 2006 mean that the country has suffered from food shortages for many years.