April 1 is the day when the school year starts in the DPRK.

The whole country is in festive mood on the day.

The gateway and gate of each school are bedecked with coloured tapes and floral decorations with posters beside them to congratulate new students.

From early morning you can see on streets children shouldering satchels go to school accompanied by their parents in unusually neat dress. The children in new uniform with flowers put on their small chests are first-year primary schoolchildren fresh from kindergarten.

All passers-by on the way to work smile seeing the children and waving to them and some approach the children to congratulate them stroking their heads.

“I also had days when I went to and from school in new uniform, shouldering a satchel filled with school things, while singing songs, and learned to my heart’s content. My children, too, had such days. Though time passes and generation changes, the joy of the day that school starts still fills the street and everybody with great excitement as ever, nay, with greater excitement. Now I want to become a student again,” said Ri Hyon Il, an aged worker of the Pyongyang Hosiery Factory.

The faces of the newcomers and their parents reflect their happiness and pride and those of promoted students do their new determination.

All photos taken that day show such images.

Choe Jong Hwa, headmistress of Segori Senior Middle School in Pothonggang District, Pyongyang, affiliated to Kim Hyong Jik University of Education, said, “The sight of students and their parents filled with joy on the day that school starts reminds me of the benevolent image of President Kim Il Sung who was quite delighted to take photos of students in new uniform at a school. There may be few people who know how much effort the state makes for the good of all children across the country.”

“Whenever seeing students go to school shouldering Sonamu satchels we produced, I can’t help feeling a lump in my throat. I envy the children growing happily by the favour of the state. Not only the children but also their parents may not know how much money and labour the state has expended for such small satchels,” said Yun Chang Nam, worker of the Pyongyang Bag Factory.

The policies of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the government for children are constantly on the increase.

Since the law on enforcing universal 12-year compulsory education was adopted in 2012, the state has pushed it as one of its important affairs to provide children with better educational conditions and environment. In 2021 the provision of uniforms to students was defined as the eternal policy of the DPRK government which should be implemented unconditionally and on a top-priority basis. In 2022 it was adopted as a law to supply such nutritious foods as dairy products to the children across the country and provide more improved conditions for bringing them up at state expense.

The nationwide festive mood of the day is attributable to such benevolence of the state.