The government of Democratic People's Republic of Korea has issued on 21 February 2019 an international appeal for help to combat food shortages after drought and floods led to a poor harvest, worsening the impact of sanctions. The DPRK is facing a shortfall of 1.4 million tons in food production this year, including crops of rice, wheat, potato and soybean. The UN estimates that 10.3 million people - almost half of North Korea’s population - are in need of food due to a sharp drop in crop production and 40% of people in the country are undernourished. Since January 2019, the Government of DPRK cut daily rations to 300g per person from 550g. ECHO field staff is currently conducting a technical mission to the DPRK to gather more information on the current humanitarian situation and needs. The mission aims to better understand the capacity of international and local actors, as well as the operational complexities in the DPRK.