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Pyongyang is to appeal to the international community to finance a US$2 billion (HK$15.47 billion) economic recovery programme.

 The aim is to make it self-sufficient in food by the year 2000, a draft United Nations document shows.

 It says the international community must restore food production and food security in order to phase out food aid now costing US$400 million a year.

 The report adds that in less than four years North Korea's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has shrunk by 50 per cent and agricultural production has dropped by 75 per cent.

 Per capita GDP halved to US$481 in 1996.

 The draft United Nations Development Fund proposal is to be presented to a meeting of aid donors scheduled for April 30 in Geneva.

 The talks are to focus on ways of boosting cereal production to six million tonnes by 2000 and on developing long-term environmentally sustainable production.

 North Korea is also applying to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund for help.

 Late last month, the first World Bank team visited Pyongyang. It followed a trip by a delegation from the International Monetary Fund last autumn.

 The UN officials have helped the North Korean Government to draw up the national recovery programme budgeted at US$2 billion.

  Under this, Pyongyang wants a US$300 million package to pay for modernising two fertiliser plants, reforestation, infrastructure rehabilitation, soil recovery and other projects.

 In return, it appears that Pyongyang will introduce Chinese-style agricultural reforms.

 The programme refers to modernising the productive capacity of agriculture by embracing the 'diversification of farm activities' and 'strengthening rural institutions, like individual households'.

 Aid sources said the jargon meant North Korea would abandon collective farms, allocate fields to peasant households, provide peasants with credit and seeds and encourage free markets in agricultural goods.

 North Korea would have to more than double rice and maize yields to grow six million tonnes, the minimum it requires.

 The draft report put the population of North Korea at 21.2 million in 1993 when the last census was taken.

 It says the population has increased since then by 1.5 per cent a year and is now 22.6 million.

 The UN's human development report says average life expectancy for North Koreans has continued to lengthen during the past seven years to reach an average of 71.4 years.

  However, aid sources said that last week North Korean officials were telling visitors life expectancy had, in fact, declined, from 74 to 71 years.

 South Korea said yesterday it would scrap many laws restricting exchanges with North Korea.



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