Deputy Pak Thae Song, premier of the Cabinet of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, made a report on the last year’s work of the Cabinet and its tasks for this year at the Twelfth Session of the 14th Supreme People’s Assembly.

The reporter said that the Cabinet, concentrating efforts on attaining the 12 major goals for the development of the national economy last year, organized and conducted the work for implementing the economic policies of the Workers’ Party of Korea, regarding it as the main task to put spurs to the increase in production and step up the readjustment and reinforcement project in all sectors and units and thus provide a sure guarantee for the fulfillment of the Five-Year Plan.

Our people achieved remarkable successes in the struggle for economic development and improvement of the people’s living standards, overcoming all sorts of unprecedented challenges and threats last year under the wise guidance of the respected General Secretary Kim Jong Un, the reporter noted, and went on:

In the dynamic struggle to attain the 12 major goals, the rolled steel production was increased by 143 percent, coal production 115 percent, nonferrous metal production 107 percent, nitrogenous fertilizer production 104 percent, cement production 102 percent, and cloth production 108 percent as compared with the previous year.

Last year we faced many obstacles and difficulties, but we stubbornly waged a grand construction campaign for the people without a moment’s interruption under the far-reaching plan of the Party, thus erecting many monumental edifices conducive to the people’s living in different parts of the country and demonstrating the development potentiality and advance spirit of our state.

Last year, everything was in short supply and difficult as never before, but the state established a well-regulated system for control over the quality of products to be provided to the schoolchildren and kindergartners and supplied quality school uniforms, bags and footwear to the schoolchildren.

True to the decisions of the plenary meetings of the Party Central Committee, the science and technology sector completed the major state projects for the development of science and technology, thus contributing to the increase in production and the improvement of the people’s standard of living.

The public health sector built standard pharmacies in all cities and counties across the country to further consolidate the foundation for the promotion of people’s health, and the sports sector won more than 360 medals including over 210 gold medals in at least 50 international games.

The successes achieved in socialist economic construction last year are a precious fruition of the wise leadership of the General Secretary and the vigorous struggle of our people firmly united as one around the Party with patriotism.

Referring to the serious shortcomings and lessons revealed in the last year’s struggle, the reporter went on:

Today we are faced with heavy task to glorify this significant year marking the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK, the final year of the Five-Year Plan, as a year of eye-opening events and great turn to bring about a phase of upturn towards a higher development stage with immense courage, redoubled efforts, inexhaustible enthusiasm and devotion.

The Cabinet will make innovations in economic operation and command, regarding it as its main task to lay a firm foundation for a new stage of development and make clear progress in improving the people’s living standards by further putting spurs to the growth and development of the overall national economy this year and unconditionally attaining the readjustment and reinforcement goals set forth by the Party.

All sectors of the national economy will lay a firm springboard for the sustained development of the national economy by putting spurs to the attainment of 12 major goals and the fulfillment of the Five-Year Plan.

We will dynamically step up the project for building 50 000 flats in Pyongyang, the construction of the Kalma coastal tourist area, the rural construction and other major policy-oriented projects and push ahead with the work for realizing the home production of finishing building materials as planned.

The agricultural sector will attain the grain production goal without fail and steadily direct efforts to the readjustment and reinforcement of irrigation system, the production of farm machines and the reclamation of tideland so as to consolidate the material and technical foundations of agriculture and definitely put the agricultural production on a track of stable and sustained growth.

The fishing sector will conduct positive fishing activities and fish farming and aquaculture on a large scale so as to produce a large amount of seafood.

The light industrial and regional-industry sectors will direct primary efforts to improving the quality of products and boost the production of essential consumer goods, condiments, school uniforms, bags and footwear and push ahead with the readjustment and reinforcement projects.

The commercial sector will enhance the leading role and control ability of the state and ensure the regular supply of nutritive and quality foodstuffs with hygienic safety to the children, true to the Party’s childcare policy.

The land and urban management sectors will push ahead with the land management and ecological environment protection, spruce up the appearance of provincial, city and county seats and provide the people with convenient and cultured living conditions and environment.

The scientific circles will turn out as one to successfully solve urgent sci-tech problems for the economic development and the improvement of people’s living standards, and the public health sector will revitalize the production of medical supplies and raise the scientification and modernization level of medical service to provide better medical benefits to the people and lay a solid foundation for the anti-epidemic work to cope with any global health crisis.

We will intensify the work for improving the educational structure, contents and methods to put the quality of education on a higher level and give state priority to education, direct efforts to strengthening the educational foundation of the country and raise a strong wind for further stirring up the work of support to education throughout society.

The Cabinet will direct efforts to solving the urgent methodological problems that conform to the country’s economic structure and specific conditions while making the working masses the real masters of economic management, and steadily and gradually push forward the improvement of economic management to develop the economy and the people’s living standards in a stable and sustained way.

It will ensure a unified command over the state emergency disaster crisis response, reinforce the emergency information system on natural disaster and the information system on flood, typhoon, drought and coastal disaster management and further strengthen the state crisis response capability to prevent human loss and minimize economic damage.

In order to successfully carry out the tasks facing us this year, the Cabinet will hold the overall economy of the country on the same line and ensure the unified and long-term guidance and management by intensifying the work to establish discipline and order in which all sectors and units unconditionally obey and implement the Cabinet decisions and instructions on the principle of the Cabinet-responsibility system and Cabinet-centred system.

It will thoroughly establish a work habit, in which the leading economic officials do away with the indifferent and self-centered practices as required by the comprehensive development of socialist construction and approach toward any knotty problems with the state stand and patriotic attitude and solve them through close cooperation between sectors and units and actively cope with the conditions and environment.

The reporter said that he would always bear in mind the expectation of the Party and the people, who entrusted the economic work of the country to him, and carry out without fail the important tasks, set forth at the Eleventh Plenary Meeting of the Eighth Party Central Committee, with tireless zeal and courageous practical ability and thus glorify this significant year marking the 80th anniversary of the WPK as a year of proud victory and honorably greet the Ninth Congress of the Party.

Rodong Sinmun