Poverty in North Korea is believed to be extensive, though reliable statistics are hard to come by due to lack of reliable research, pervasive censorship and extensive media manipulation in North Korea.
Poverty in North Korea has been widely repeated by Western media sources with the majority referring to the famine that affected the country in the mid-1990s. A 2006 report suggests that North Korea requires an estimated 5.3m tonnes of grain per year while harvesting only an estimated 4.5m tonnes, and thus relies on foreign aid to overcome the deficit. A more recent report in 2014 suggests that starvation is now a myth but highlights inequalities in wealth that are similar to other countries of the world.
Poverty in Korea has been attributed to poor governance by the totalitarian regime.