SEOUL, March 16 (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has visited a major housing construction site nearing completion in Pyongyang, describing it as bringing a "new era of prosperity" to the capital, state media reported Sunday.
Kim visited the construction site of 10,000 apartments in the capital's Hwasong area Saturday -- the third phase of a four-part plan to build 40,000 units in the area, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
"This is a significant development of enhancing the strategic function and position of the capital city," Kim was quoted as saying. "This is of great experimental significance in putting the new era of prosperity of Pyongyang on a higher level."
In 2021, North Korea unveiled a plan to build 50,000 new apartments in Pyongyang over five years and has so far completed the construction of 30,000 units. It began construction of the final 10,000 units last month.
Meanwhile, the dispatch said Kim instructed officials to prepare for a ceremony to mark the completion of the 10,000 apartments ahead of the Day of the Sun -- the birthday of the country's late founder Kim Il-sung on April 15 -- marking the reappearance of the term in state media.
The North celebrates the late founder's birthday as a major national holiday but had recently stopped using the term Day of the Sun, in an apparent effort to elevate Kim Jong-un's cult of personality.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (C) claps as he attends a ceremony marking the beginning of a housing construction project in Pyongyang on Feb. 16, 2025, in this file photo released by the Korean Central News Agency the next day. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)
yunhwanchae@yna.co.kr
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