North Korea seeks FDI for new tourism zone

wonsan-kalma-international-airportInside the Wonsan Kalma International Airport. Credit: Aram Pan/DPRK360.com

NORTH Korea is embarking on a major campaign to expand its tourism sector and is appealing to foreign investors to sink money into the Kalma district on the east coast of the peninsula.

The campaign to develop Kalma, close to the city of Wonsan, comes just weeks after North Korea created another special tourism zone at Mubong, the area around Mount Paektu and on the border with China.

State media has reported that a resort town is to be constructed along a 4km stretch of beach at Kalma and is emphasising its proximity to scenic spots including Mount Kumgang, Lake Sijung, Samil lagoon and the Masikryong ski resort.

Under the terms of the 2013 Law on Economic Development of Parks, foreign investors are permitted to carry out independent business activities in designated tourism zones. However, the country’s appeal to investors remains questionable as it still faces international economic sanctions.

Simon Cockerell, general manager of Beijing-based Koryo Tours, said a conference last year for potential investors in the Wonsan area attracted “a couple of hundred people, almost all of them Chinese”. Yet, he remains skeptical of the event’s success as “investment there can be complicated”.

It is also uncertain if tourism development in the area will be matched with mass market tourist demand. “Wonsan already has hotels and an airport built, so they have done the easy stuff,” Cockerell said. “But why would tourists want to go there?”

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