For decades, the black market economy has been a lifeline for North Korean citizens. It enabled them to trade goods and services in ways that both ensured their survival while offering some a chance for upward mobility in an otherwise rigidly hierarchical social system. For many, this trading occurred at what became known as the jangmadang — free markets that operated independently of state authority or oversight. 

While the North Korean government under Kim Jong Un tacitly accepted them for the first nine years of his rule, circumstances changed during the COVID lockdown. The Kim regime took steps to slow down the informal economy and start restructuring it under the central government. Now, a recent report from sources inside North Korea suggests that North Korea is seeking to incorporate private market businesses under state authorities by year’s end.

So, what exactly is happening with the jangmadang? Will the Kim regime be successful in uprooting this core element of North Korea’s black market economy?

The answers to these questions are significant for anyone seeking to understand the evolution of the North Korean government and society under Kim Jong Un, particularly in the post-COVID era. It is indicative of where the regime has been successful in reinforcing authoritarian controls, and how resourceful the North Korean people will continue to be in finding workarounds to state-mandated rules.

What are the Jangmadang?

To understand what jangmadang are and why they became so pivotal to North Korean society, it is necessary to look back to the mid-1990s and the “Arduous March” famine. A combination of poor harvests, loss of external food support, and government mismanagement led to mass starvation throughout the country. Conditions became so dire that the government was unable to provide even basic necessities via the country’s long-standing Public Distribution System. The number of deaths was enormous, with some estimates reaching the........

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