North Koreans Studying Abroad

One of our aims is to provide opportunities for North Korean students to study abroad. In 2009, we were working on sending students to attend international conferences. There was some interests from conference organizers but some organizers insisted that the students apply through their online application system (which North Koreans cannot access) and write their applications on topics that were irrelevant in a North Korean context (and which we did not feel comfortable pushing for as we did not know what possible repercussions this might have on the students).

For some other students, the sponsorship provided by the conference organizers could not cover the full transport costs for the students. We are still negotiating with different conference sponsors. This is possible, although it still surprises many people when they hear about this. Aside from China, Vietnam or Russia, North Koreans study in a variety of countries in a range of programs. I have compiled some of such exchanges below. This list is by no means exhaustive and are extracted from Tim Beal's website.

If your institution is looking into sponsoring North Koreans to study abroad, please contact our team!

In 2010:

Seoul to support U.N project to train North Korean technicians

SEOUL Jan 19 South Korea plans to contribute 1.88 billion won (US$1.67 million) this year to a U.N. project to help train North Korean officials and technicians, a government source said Sunday. The project, to be undertaken by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), will invite an unspecified number of North Korean bureaucrats, involved in energy, environment, transportation and regional cooperation, to overseas training programs, the source said. Established in 1947 with its headquarters in Bangkok, ESCAP is the regional development arm of the United Nations, with 62 member countries. The Seoul government will use its inter-Korean cooperation fund for the contribution, the source said, requesting anonymity. The training program for this year is scheduled to start late this month in India, the source said. [Training]

How Diversity Took 2 Asian Universities to the Top

Lee Hang-su There was a rumor recently circulating among South Korean students at the University of Hong Kong that some North Korean students were studying there as well. Hearing the rumor, I contacted the university and confirmed that it was true. Three North Koreans started there in the 2009-2010 academic year, two of them giving North Korea as their country of origin on their application forms and the third being a dependent of a North Korean official stationed in Hong Kong. It is the first time in the university's 99-year history that North Korean students have been admitted, a university spokesman said. [Training]

Delegation from North headed to the United States

January 07, 2010 A delegation from a North Korean university involved in an exchange program with its American counterpart plans to fly to the United States later this month, Korea Society President Evans Revere said yesterday. Revere told Radio Free Asia that representatives from the Kim Chaek University of Technology in Pyongyang will be led by the school president Hong So-hon. [Training]

S. Korea gave Pyongyang officials market economy training in 2009: source

SEOUL, Jan. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea helped North Korean officials and trade experts receive up-to-date market economy training last year, a government source said Friday. The source at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance said 40 North Korean officials were taught about the stock market, supply of consumer goods, light industrial policies, international trade and intellectual property right protection at China's Dalian University in October and November. A research institute under the state-run Seoul National University provided the education program, which cost the South 220 million won (US$194,000). The official, who declined to be identified, said that the research institute selected training courses with input given by North Korean officials and a similar amount of money has been reserved in the 2010 budget to conduct similar programs this year. The ministry, however, said that South Korean officials were not directly involved in the training program. Despite the cooling off in bilateral relations after President Lee Myung-bak took power in early 2008, Seoul has provided assistance to help train North Korean computer experts, medical personnel and government officials as part of its effort to expand cross-border exchange and contacts. [Marketisation] [Training]

In 2008

# Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Railroaders Arrive in Vladivostok for Training

North Korean railroad representatives have already acquainted with port station Nakhodka Vostochnaia work VLADIVOSTOK, December 18, vladivostoktimes.com Railroader delegation from Democratic People’s Republic of Korea continues its training at Vladivostok department of Far Eastern railroad (Public corporation branch “Russian railroads”), press secretary of Vladivostok Far Eastern railroad department- public corporation branch “Russian railroads” head Alexander Artomonov reports. Guests from North Korea came to Vladivostok from Khabarovsk to have training. In Khabarovsk the delegation got acquainted with personnel training system on the Far Eastern railroad. They also visited locomotive depot Khabarovsk-2. The delegation includes employees of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Railroad Ministry, foreign railroads and transport railroad company “Tonkhe” cooperation management. In Primorsky Territory the representatives of North Korean railroads examined the work of port station Nakhodka Vostochnaia, visited container terminal in Vostochniy Post and Nakhodka railroad facilities. [Railways]

Amazing Business Pioneer in North Korea (Felix Abt)

An Amazing Business Pioneer in North Korea is telling us the real reasons behind the sudden and surprising pull-out of a global engineering giant from this country

How a hopeless pharmaceutical joint venture was turned into a success story, why and how humanitarian aid and economic development mostly follow conflicting interests, how foreign business people challenge and survive an environment overshadowed by heavy geopolitical influences including arbitrary sanctions imposed by foreign powers, how North Korean managers prepare themselves to get fit for export and international competition, and what the dos and don’ts are for those who want to successfully start a business in this very special country. [IJV] [FDI] [Opening] [Sanctions] [Training]

Solar Box Cooker to North Korea

Our advisor, Wee Lin, stands beside a solar box cooker he donated to rural regions in North Korea on a project unrelated to Choson Exchange. You can read more about him and his good works here and here. Update: The Solar Kettle is the glass vacuum tube and black plastic tube standing against the wall

Business Studies in North Korea

A couple of years ago, when I first visited Pyongyang, a Kim Il Sung University student told me that she wanted to be a businesswomen. I was delighted to hear that since I was planning to go into research and teaching in international management. I asked her why. She said, “I want to prove that women can be good business leaders too.” A short while later, we started talking about politics. The issue must have caused her some distress. She asked me whether I was interested in such issues. I said “I am interested in everything… including politics. Aren’t you interested in it too?” She replied, “Politics is for men only.”

Obviously, when North Koreans talk about business, they have a very different context in mind. Businesses do not operate in a market economy and this has significant implications for what knowledge can be immediately implementable. However, many of the basic decisions that businesses have to make everyday still have to be made in North Korea: how to sell, how to reduce costs, how to lead organizations or how to enter foreign markets. The issue is whether the incentives or signals function in the same manner, and whether these differences lead to a reordering of business priorities.

I wonder whether the student represents a trend towards greater interest in business studies in North Korea and whether such trends are divided among gender lines. Some NGOs we talked to mention how during visits to Pyongyang-based universities, North Koreans had very specific requests for business textbooks. The requests reflect a level of knowledge of the field of business studies that an outsider normally does not expect from North Koreans. The interesting question is how this knowledge is operationalized under a non-market context.

Sept 7 - Sept 14 Pyongyang Visit

Our upcoming trips will be divided into two parts with the first part (Sept 7 - Sept 11) focused on our finance training programs and the second part (Sept 11 - Sept 14) focused on organizing a visit by students from the National University of Singapore and other academics. Our visit will focus on academic institutions and meetings with relevant staff at these institutions. Currently, we will be visiting Kim Il Sung University, Kimchaek University of Technology, Kim Hyong Jik University of Education, Pyongyang Middle School No.1 and Kumsong School.

Geoffrey K. See

Business English & Business Chinese Programs in Pyongyang

Geoffrey K. See During my last visit to Pyongyang, I noticed how Kim Il Sung University students were attached to tour groups with English-speaking tourists to practice their English. There is clearly an interest and need for good language training in North Korea – especially given the paucity of exposure to language practice opportunities there.

After talking to former staff from the United Nations Development Program (where the idea came from) and with other academic institutions working with North Korea, I believe that setting up a Business English and Business Chinese program targeted at younger North Koreans might be a good idea. Initial discussions with our North Korean partners indicate that such a program would be of interest.

This program would allow us to reach out to a younger group. We can use business cases as a means of teaching language, and at the same time, use language training as a means of imparting important business concepts. Furthermore, by focusing on language training, we can bring in trainers from universities who need not be as qualified, thus reducing our costs. This program can be run over the summer.

The main obstacle would be cost of accommodating the trainers. Given the low-cost structure that we are running Choson Exchange on, we need to see if we can get our trainers accommodated for free, preferably in the student dormitories. Otherwise, such a program would not be possible.

DPRK 2008 (Rough) Standard of Living Indicator across Provinces

Using the recently released DPRK 2008 census figures, I have constructed a "rough" guide to the different living standards in different provinces using some figures embedded in the census. Feel free to take a look and provide comments.

Highlights: Figure 2 provides a clear picture of the large gap between Pyongyang and the rest of the DPRK in terms of access to “high quality” public infrastructure. Using differences in access to such infrastructure as reported in the 2008 DPRK census, I attempt to construct a rough ranking of standards of living in different provinces of the DPRK (Table 2). Caveats apply in determining the accuracy of this ranking.

Informal Survey of North Korean Finance Training Needs

Geoffrey K. See In order to plan for the upcoming training program, we asked our North Korean counterparts to conduct an informal pre-training survey to understand the areas of financial knowledge which are of interest. The pool of trainees is anticipated to be 50 people and will include financial experts in main banks in Pyongyang and other cities, as well as lecturers from Kim Il Sung University. Expected training will last 2 to 3 days. All attendees will have a minimum of an undergraduate degree and some will have had post-graduate training.

The pre-training survey among this pool of attendees indicates that the following topics are of interest: 1. Corporate finance with a focus on choosing between different forms of financing. In particular, how should top executives think about and choose among debt financing, private equity and public equity. Under debt financing, trainees are also interested in learning about financing foreign trade, asset-backed financing and structured products. 2. Comparing the advantages and disadvantages of exchange traded funds, mutual funds and private equity funds with the use of examples to illustrate the differences between products. 3. Explaining the use and structuring of financial derivatives and Collaterized Debt Obligations (CDOs) with a focus on their impact on the subprime mortgages market. 4. Macro topics of interest include the management of foreign exchange policy and the operation of money markets

It is possible that topics chosen reflect developments this year: the formation of the Daepung Investment Fund and a State Development Bank.