The Regional Development 20×10 Policy has entered a full-scale stage of implementation. The gigantic struggle of creation unprecedented in the history of the DPRK is aimed at injecting great vitality into the effort to drastically improve the material and cultural living standards of the people across the country and develop socialism in an overall way by bringing about epoch-making changes in the development of the regional economy within the coming ten years.

The policy is a brilliant embodiment of the ennobling political ideal of the Workers’ Party of Korea—giving top priority to the masses of the people.

The new policy for regional development stipulates that the Party directly undertakes and executes the construction of modern regional-industry factories in 20 counties every year as an unerring policy task so as to upgrade the basic material and cultural living standards of the people in all cities and counties, or across the country, within ten years.

The Party Central Committee intends to realize in the current generation without fail the cherished desire of local people to live a cultured life as good as the urban one to their heart’s content and provide the entire population with a happy and civilized living as early as possible.

The implementation of the new policy will result in modern regional-industry factories built in all counties with their production on a normal track. This will in turn bring about a fundamental change in the livelihood of the local people and upgrade in their material and cultural living standards. To have planned such a far-reaching project and made it a state policy is a revolutionary decision that can only be made by the WPK taking the people-first principle as its political ideal.

The regional development policy is based on the WPK’s scientific outlook on development geared to a simultaneous, balanced development of all regions of the country.

It is the Party’s intention to develop all spheres of social life, all fields and all regions in a balanced, simultaneous and substantial way so that all people can lead a happy and civilized life. Given that there is a large gap between the capital city and provinces and between urban and rural areas, the most reasonable way to attain such simultaneous and balanced development is to concentrate efforts on the development of local industries.

That’s why the Party clarified a scientific line of dynamically pushing the development of local industries, apart from the line of rural development, so as to upgrade the basic material and cultural living standards of the locals across the country at the earliest possible date.

When developing their industries comprehensively and specifically by faithfully banking on their natural and geological advantages and raw materials, cities and counties will be able to improve the people’s livelihood and boost their development potentials.

Therefore, the policy serves as important guidelines for bridging the gap and addressing imbalance in all aspects between urban and rural areas and between the capital city and provinces and stepping up the construction of a wealthy and civilized society where all develop alike.

The struggle to open a new phase of development for local industries is an extremely arduous, complex and uphill task that will have to face lots of difficulties and challenges.

However, the WPK has made the crucial decision on unhesitatingly launching a new struggle to fulfill the cherished desire of the local people. It is the immutable principles of the Party and government that there may be people distant or near in geographical terms and differences among localities in terms of economic potential, living environment and resources but there should be no backward area in people’s livelihood within the territory of the DPRK.

Kim Su Hyang