Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, made the following important conclusion "On Forcefully Promoting the Implementation of the Party’s 'Regional Development 20×10 Policy'" at the 19th Enlarged Meeting of the Political Bureau of the 8th Central Committee of the WPK on January 24:

Comrades,

The 19th Enlarged Meeting of the Political Bureau of the 8th Central Committee of the Party deliberately discussed and decided on the measures for implementing the "regional development 20×10 policy", which will bring about a definite and rapid development of the future regional economy and greatly encourage the overall prosperity of the state, and the issues of hastening the completion of major policy-oriented projects.

It was, indeed, important and historic choice and decision.

This will lead to starting a new revolution which will wipe out the centuries-old backwardness of the regions and realize the desire of the regional people in the coming ten years and taking measures to successfully complete the important plans for the promotion of the people’s well-being to add great vitality to our grand struggle for the overall development of socialism.

The strategic significance of the enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau is great indeed, and I am very satisfied with the fact that the meeting adopted important resolutions which clearly demonstrate the basic principles and lines of our Party’s struggle and the popular character that runs through them.

Through this meeting our Party has confirmed all measures for the simultaneous, very balanced, comprehensive, effective and peculiar development of regional industry and thoroughly secured the guarantee for their implementation. This has provided an epochal milestone in the Party’s history of struggle, in which all efforts have been directed only to the good of the people for nearly 80 years since its founding.

As I have already mentioned, given that the rural housing construction, an unprecedentedly vast and ambitious front in finally breaking with the backwardness of the countryside, is being undertaken on a nationwide scale, it is not easy to make a bold decision to form another large front of opening up a new phase of regional industrial development across the country and to simultaneously follow through these two revolutionary stages.

But the desire of the regional people is the desire of our Party, the development of regional industry is the development of the regions, and the development of the regions is the overall prosperity and growth of the state. So we have made an important decision to wage a new struggle without hesitation.

Taking this opportunity, I have stressed once again that it is an important principle our Party should adhere to at present and a political fighting task that must be fulfilled without fail in switching over to the period of overall development of socialism to reduce the gap and eliminate imbalance between town and countryside, the capital and regional areas in all aspects, to accelerate the building of rich and civilized society where all the regions develop simultaneously and, in particular, to give priority to promoting the well-being of the regional people, protecting their rights and interests and improving the regional and rural living environment.

We should reinforce the traditions and mettle of struggle peculiar to the Korean revolution, consistent with continuous innovation and uninterrupted advance, and thus make the meaningful resolutions of today result in perfect revolution without fail through bold and practical action.

Comrades,

I sensed the atmosphere of the greatest upsurge across the country through the hearty response of all the participants that had constantly heated this meeting hall and could again confirm the validity of our determination in the sincerity of you who approached the discussion of agenda items with a responsible and active attitude, which greatly encouraged me to be optimistic about the prospect of our work. And I am pleased about it.

This convinced me that our new work for the beloved people will be perfect and substantial in its process and completion like its exciting start, and I’d like to emphasize some important matters arising in thoroughly implementing the items deeply discussed and decided at the current meeting of the Political Bureau.

In order to ensure that the "regional development 20×10 policy" produce successful results from this year, it is necessary to conduct the operation and guidance for its implementation in a detailed and substantial way.

First of all, a well-regulated system for building regional industry factories in cities and counties throughout the country should be established.

It is important to establish a proper system in any work. The construction of 50 000 flats in the capital city has been pushed forward with a well-regulated work system. As a result, 10 000 flats are built every year without the exception of a single flat.

Likewise, in order to build regional industrial factories in 20 cities and counties every year without deflection, we must first establish a correct work system.

The "non-permanent committee for the promotion of regional development 20×10" to be organized in the future should establish a well-regulated system of exercising unified control and guidance over all the work related to the construction of regional industrial factories and preparations for their operation, ranging from designing to the supply of materials and funds and establishment of raw material bases, and tighten control.

The promotion committee comprises officials of departments of the Party Central Committee, the Ministry of National Defence and relevant ministries and national institutions. It is necessary to conduct mutual cooperation properly in conformity with it.

Noting that the Party’s call for construction of regional industry factories like those of Kimhwa County is to build them in such a way that they are at a modern level with highly civilized working and living conditions like the regional industrial factories in the county, but not to set the sizes of the factories at the level of those of Kimhwa County, he said that the sizes of regional industry factories should be set in proper consideration of the populations, the demand of inhabitants, economic situation and the natural and geographical conditions in cities and counties.

He said that it is especially important to provide the cities and counties with designs suited to their specific conditions and that it is necessary to thoroughly establish the system of tripartite agreement between the design units, construction units and operation units so as to prevent unreasonable problems from arising in the process of operating a factory.

He said that when fixing the site of a factory, it is necessary to consider at the beginning whether it would fully meet such conditions necessary for operation of the factory as the supply of electricity and industrial water and whether it is favorable for transportation and whether it would cause inconvenience of inhabitants, in particular.

He noted that the most vigorous and militant People’s Army has been placed in the forefront of the struggle for the development of regional industry, adding that it should become standard-bearer and hero in the gigantic struggle for fulfilling the revolutionary task, the long-cherished desire of the Party, and preserve its noble name as creator and defender of the people’s happiness.

Referring to the issues of conducting the inspection and supervision of the whole construction in a responsible manner and supplying building materials in time, he stressed the need to set the level of updating equipment needed for the new regional industry factories higher than those of Kimhwa County.

Calling for pushing ahead simultaneously in a far-sighted way with the work to normalize and revitalize the production at regional industry factories and the construction project, he urged the city and county Party committees to turn the work for increasing the production capacity of raw material bases into the work exclusive to them and push ahead with it through ideological mobilization of officials, Party members and other working people in their regions.

He said that the regional industry factories built on a modern footing in cities and counties should produce a lot of quality goods favored by the people by directing efforts to improving the quality of products.

Just as step after step one goes far and the proper first step is followed by vigorous next steps, we can push ahead with the construction of regional industry factories on an annual basis, looking at the sure success of the "regional development 20×10 policy" set forth by the Party, only when we successfully complete the construction of regional industry factories planned for this year, he said, noting that a measure has been taken by the Party to make sure that the members of its Political Bureau are each put in charge of a city or a county to strongly promote the construction of regional industry factories.

Saying that the chief secretaries of provincial, city and county Party committees are the direct organizers and executors for the implementation of the regional development policy, he called upon them to fulfill their duties, addressing themselves to urgent and indispensable jobs and always focusing their concern and thinking on the development of their regions and the improvement of the people’s living standard.

In particular, the Party Central Committee would estimate the Party spirit, popular spirit and sense of responsibility of the chief secretaries of provincial, city and county Party committees with the results of their work for implementing the regional development policy, he said. And he instructed the chief secretaries of provincial Party committees to build raw material production bases and train skilled workers in a responsible manner so as to actually operate the regional industry factories to be built this year in two cities and counties and make a report about their results to the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee at the end of the year.

He urged the chairmen of the provincial, city and county people’s committees to enhance their responsibility and role in implementing the regional development policy as befitting the ones responsible for the livelihood of inhabitants in their regions and dedicate themselves, with the same mind and intention as the Party Central Committee, to the struggle to bring about a new era in which the regional areas change.

Saying that the regional industry construction guidance section, to be set up at the Organizational Leadership Department of the Party Central Committee, is required to guarantee before the Party the implementation of the "regional development 20×10 policy" by providing effective political guidance and policy guidance, he clarified in detail the duty and role of the section.

Referring to the fact that important measures have been taken by the Party at the meeting for the rapid completion of incomplete major policy-oriented projects, he underlined the need to make substantial changes desired and awaited by the people this year, too. He went on:

Today we are faced with a heavy yet honorable task to provide the people with more civilized and happier living conditions and environment.

The leading officials of the Party and the Government present here should regard the great trust of tens of millions of people as their lifeblood and carry out the resolution of the current meeting without fail through redoubled efforts and with stronger fighting spirit so as to make sure that the happy laughter of the people can be heard everywhere on this land.

What you should bear in mind and awake to is the spirit and attitude of serving the people.

I think that the success of our purposeful great revolutionary work should be guaranteed by our leading cadres and officials’ transparent outlook on the people, before any existence and provision of fund, materials and manpower and the meticulous economic operations.

We should always remember what the people are to us and for what and for whom we have assumed ourselves the responsibility for carrying out such gigantic work in the most difficult period.

As long as there are the most correct line and policies of struggle set forth by our Party, the accumulated experience and the solid potentialities of the self-supporting economy, the new era of regional change will be opened up in reality soon, not in the distant future.

All the officials should fulfill their mission and duty in carrying out the resolution adopted at the present enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau most thoroughly and perfectly and thus live up to the great trust of our people unconditionally without fail.

Let us all struggle vigorously for the new revolutionary fruition of our great cause, for the overall development of socialism and for the well-being of our great people with great confidence and courage.

Political News Team