1 in 6 N. Korean children under 5 suffer from stunted growth: report

Deputy executive director for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Shanelle Marie Hall, right, speaks about the most recent findings from the agency's Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) on North Korea, at the Taedonggang Diplomatic Club in Pyongyang, June 20, 2018. AFP-Yonhap

Around one in six North Korean children under the age of five suffer from stunted growth due to malnutrition, an international report showed Saturday.

The stunting rate of the children in the age group in the impoverished state was estimated at 16.8 percent, or 285,000 children, in 2022, according to the report on the levels and trends in child malnutrition released jointly by the United Nations Children's Fund, the World Health Organization and the World Bank Group, Tuesday.

The figure is over 10 times greater than the 26,800 children in the same age group experiencing the condition in South Korea, the report showed.

It, however, marked a decline from 2012, when 411,300 North Korean children were estimated to have suffered from the condition.

The number of overweight North Korean children in the age group stood at 47,500 last year, compared with 25,100 in 2012.

The report comes amid concerns over chronic malnutrition in the isolated country, which has implemented strong antivirus measures in recent years, such as border lockdowns, to ward off the spread of COVID-19. (Yonhap)