Program Details: North Korea

Mercy Corps helps distribute medications to this clinic in Najin. Photo: Cassandra Nelson/Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is assisting North Koreans impacted by economic collapse, agricultural failure and a lack of medical services.

Due to the shortage of essential medicines, health facilities throughout the country cannot treat common but life-threatening diseases such as diarrhea and pneumonia. The lack of proper treatment and medicine takes the highest toll on children, causing malnutrition and fatalities.

Programs in Focus

Emergency Medical Assistance: Mercy Corps works with vulnerable individuals and families to address communities' critical health needs, including services and support. Throughout 2004, Mercy Corps sent eight shipments, worth $225,000, of medicine and medical supplies to deficient hospitals, and monitored the facilities.

Sustainable Agriculture Initiatives: The Apple Tree Project, started in 2000, supports the development of apple orchards within the southwest region of North Korea and has led to the successful planting of over 70,000 trees. An initiative to provide assistance in rainbow trout farming was developed with a group of fish hatchery managers visiting the United States in July 2003.