North Korean foresters have put into operation the country’s first national forest pest surveillance and forecasting system, designed to detect, map and predict pest and disease outbreaks across state forests, according to a new report obtained by Wood Central from North Korean state media.
North Korean publication, Rodong Sinmun, said the integrated platform will regularly survey and forecast the location, extent and damage status of pests and diseases under centralised command, enabling faster countermeasures and near‑real‑time monitoring of pest‑management operations.
The project was led by teams from the Forestry Science Department at Kim Il Sung University and the Forest Research Institute. Associate Professor Dr Jong Yong Sik, head of the university department, and colleagues classified surveillance approaches by regional characteristics and developed monitoring methodologies for major forest pests, according to the report. Fieldwork reportedly included species‑by‑species surveys in selected plots to establish standardised surveillance protocols.
Scientists at the Forest Research Institute devised what the state paper called a “North Korean‑style” forecasting methodology and built a large database and supporting software within a short timeframe, Rodong Sinmun said. After development, researchers coordinated with the Forest Guidance Bureau of the Ministry of Land and Environmental Protection to promote field implementation.
State media framed the system as a scientific and technological foundation for restoring and protecting forest resources, saying it will help transform mountains into “verdant, treasure‑filled forests and golden mountains.” The newspaper added that the research team will continue refining the system to improve its scientific validity and operational effectiveness.
The report offers no independent verification of the system’s capabilities, deployment scope, technical specifications, timeline or funding, and it does not say whether the platform integrates remote sensing, international datasets or external technical partners.
Forestry specialists say national pest-surveillance systems are most effective when they combine standardised field surveys, remote sensing, robust databases, and timely decision-support tools. They warn long‑term success depends on sustained field capacity, consistent data quality and ongoing software and hardware maintenance—issues not addressed in the state account.
The announcement is the latest state‑reported scientific initiative to bolster natural‑resource management in North Korea and will be of interest to regional observers monitoring forest health and pest risk on the Korean Peninsula.
