Question Period Note: Canada's Humanitarian Response in North Korea

Canada's humanitarian assistance programming in North Korea

• Canada provides humanitarian funding on the basis of need by supporting partners who deliver assistance in accordance with the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence.

• Canada is concerned by the humanitarian situation in North Korea, and is supporting experienced international partners to address high levels of under-nutrition and food insecurity.

• Canada does not provide humanitarian assistance funding to the North Korean regime, or to local North Korean organizations.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is in the midst of a protracted humanitarian situation. An estimated 10.3 million people (41% of the population) require humanitarian assistance, including food, nutrition support, health care, clean water and sanitation. The most vulnerable people are children under the age of 5, pregnant and lactating women, people with disabilities, people with noncommunicable diseases and common illnesses, and rural populations. DPRK also remains vulnerable to natural disasters, particularly extended droughts and near-annual floods. These frequent disasters compound people's vulnerabilities and need for humanitarian assistance.

A significant constraint on humanitarian operations is the indirect impact from the international political environment and the strengthened international and autonomous sanctions against North Korea. The disruption of banking channels and procurement delays for humanitarian supplies have affected humanitarian agencies' ability to effectively implement their programs. The UN believes that international sanctions have indirectly contributed to reluctance among donors to provide funds to the DPRK. UN partners in the DPRK have robust policies in place, such as anti-corruption and anti-fraud measures, to ensure assistance reaches appropriate beneficiaries. Humanitarian access continues to be regulated by government authorities but has improved in recent years according to the main humanitarian organizations in country.

Since 2005, Canada has provided over $37 million to the international humanitarian response in North Korea. This includes $1.5 million in 2019 to the World Food Programme and UNICEF (unannounced). Canada's humanitarian funding in 2018 helped provide monthly food assistance to over 450,000 vulnerable people in DPRK. Canada is also supporting humanitarian partners in DPRK through its contributions to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). In 2019, the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs approved an allocation of $6 million from the CERF to provide life-saving assistance to vulnerable people affected by Tropical Cyclone Lingling in DPRK.

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