The nuclear-armed country, which is under international sanctions for its banned weapons programmes, suffers from chronic food shortages.

North Korea is particularly vulnerable to natural disasters, including floods and droughts, due to a lack of infrastructure, deforestation, and decades of state mismanagement.

Rodong SinmunThe official newspaper of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party claimed on Wednesday that government officials and employees working in companies and factories have “joined the fight in the drought-stricken areas”.

According to the newspaper, “Once they arrived, they started watering and working with farmers to fight nature.”

However, the article did not specify the extent of the damage to it so far, but specifies that these measures are aimed at limiting the consequences of the current drought and “preventing further potential damage.”

According to the official Korean Central News Agency, citing the country’s meteorological services, the drought is expected to continue throughout the week.

She added that light rain was expected on Friday, “but it will not help address the drought.”

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for steps to improve the “tense” food situation caused by the epidemic, typhoons and international sanctions.

Since the beginning of 2020, North Korea has isolated itself from the rest of the world to protect itself from the pandemic. It briefly reopened its border with China to transport goods earlier this year.

Pyongyang said that it has not recorded any cases of COVID-19 virus on its soil.

North Korea, whose economy and agriculture are being decimated after decades of disastrous management and resources poured into its nuclear program, suffered a deadly famine in the second half of the 1990s.

Hundreds of thousands of people were killed, some estimates indicate millions of victims.