The seventh ruling Worker’s Party congress in North Korea, the first in 36 years, turned out to be a coronation for Kim Jong-un, formalising the system centred on the young leader and promoting the party’s status vis-à-vis the army’s.

The national byungjin strategy, which calls for securing a nuclear arsenal while seeking to develop the economy, was re-emphasised.

A five-year plan was put forward to show the government’s commitment to economic problems, especially the supply of electricity, as Kim admitted that a lack of power has affected economic development and improvement of people’s living standards.

The general idea from the congress was thus that Pyongyang would devote greater efforts to economic reform, pay more attention to developing its economy and improve people’s lives.

Read the rest.