Amid economic hardship, a growing number of North Koreans are flocking to gold mines in Unsan and Pakchon counties to earn money through odd jobs or gold panning, a source in North Pyongan province said recently.
Unsan and Pakchon counties are home to gold mines operated by powerful agencies such as the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea and the Supreme Command of the National Guard. Alluvial gold is known to occur in the rivers and streams of the two counties.
Gold mining in North Korea has been slow, as gold exports declined after the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, fewer people panned for gold as the North Korean authorities cracked down on private gold sales.
North Korean authorities still consider the private mining and sale of gold illegal and severely restrict the practice, but people still pan for gold – a potentially profitable venture – by bribing enforcement agencies, the source said.
“Since the enforcement officials also need money, more and more of them are taking bribes to allow private gold panning,” the source said.
Under these circumstances, even people in coal mining areas have recently begun working in gold mines instead.
Coal mines provided rations even during the Arduous March, but recently, as more and more mines either delay the provision of rations or provide rations only for individual workers without provisions for their families, residents of coal mining areas are increasingly worried about their livelihoods.
As a result, even residents of coal-mining counties have been flocking to coal mines using the so-called “8.3 method” – paying a fixed amount to their official workplace to skip work and earn money elsewhere.