S. Korea informs North of fertilizer shipment plans

Asian Economic News, May 7, 2001

SEOUL, April 30 Kyodo

South Korea informed North Korea on Monday of its initial shipment plans to send fertilizer to North Korea to help boost the North's agricultural production, South Korea's National Red Cross (KNRC) said in a statement.

In a telephone message sent to the North Korean Red Cross chief, KNRC chairman Suh Young Hoon said the first shipment of 13,000 tons of fertilizer will leave the southern port of Yosu for the North's western port of Nampo on Wednesday.

Suh also said the second and third shipments of fertilizer will depart for North Korea on Thursday and Saturday.

The fertilizer shipments from South Korea are to meet a North Korean request for 200,000 tons of fertilizer supply, made earlier this month.

The South Korean government decided last Thursday to use about 68 billion won (some $52 million) from the ''South-North Exchanges and Cooperation Fund,'' a state fund set aside to promote inter-Korean exchanges and cooperation, to fund the fertilizer aid to the North.

Last year, South Korea sent 500,000 tons of rice and corn, worth about $90 million, as well as 300,000 tons of fertilizer to North Korea. In 1999, it provided the North with 155,000 tons of fertilizer.