UNICEF and Epistemic Authority in North Korea, from Humanitarian Emergency to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), 1995-2015
Gianluca Spezza
Abstract:
This study analyzes the work of UNICEF in the DPRK (North Korea) from 1995 to the late 2000s, asking how and why UNICEF pursued development objectives, particularly in the field of education, despite refusal from key donors to countenance support for developmental programs in the DPRK and their insistence that aid should be confined to the humanitarian sphere. The core argument of this article is that UNICEF – a key UN agency with a semi-autonomous capacity – developed sufficient epistemic authority to legitimize humanitarianism and development as non-mutually-exclusive goals of DPRK operations and therefore allowed itself to pursue the implementation of educa-tional programs in North Korea, despite the reluctance of donors to provide support for development work in the country.
Related Publications
-
With New Law on Nuclear Forces Policy, North Korea Says Its Nuclear Status Is ‘Irreversible’
Introduction: A day before the 74th anniversary of the country’s founding, North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong Un publicly declared that his nuclear weapons are no longer a bargaining chip […]
-
Economic Transformation Under Kim Jong Il
Kim Jong Il noted the importance of both economic reforms and North Korea’s connecting with the outside world. However, domestic political constraints did not allow him to proceed with bold […]
-
From Europe, Yoon Suk Yeol Calls for International Cooperation on North Korea’s Nuclear and Missile Threats
Introduction: The leaders of the United States, South Korea, and Japan met in Madrid on Wednesday. Held on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) meetings this week, the trilateral […]
-
Korean Peninsula Tensions Escalate Amid a Return to Old School Policies
Introduction: South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin met his U.S. counterpart Antony Blinken on Monday in Washington, D.C. The meeting came three weeks after a summit meeting in Seoul between […]
-
What North Korea Thinks About the Russia-Ukraine War
Introduction: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has raised many new security concerns not only for Europe, but also for the rest of the world. In Northeast Asia, Russia’s proximity and strategic […]
-
South Korea’s Foreign Policy in Changing Times: Reversing Course?
Abstract: The tragedy currently unfolding in Ukraine may be a symptom of new dynamics in global geopolitics. The changing balance of power epitomized by the rise of China and the […]