Ch’ŏllima Movement

North Korean economic program

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June 24, 2026

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The Ch'ollima Movement, meaning "Flying Horse," was a mass mobilization campaign launched in North Korea in the late 1950s. It was inspired by China's Great Leap Forward and aimed to rapidly increase industrial and agricultural production. This movement was part of North Korea's broader economic policy of self-reliance, known as Juche, which emphasized political, economic, and military independence. While the Ch'ollima Movement achieved its goals of boosting production, it came at a significant economic cost and contributed to periods of hardship.12

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North Korea
Economy of North Korea
…a mass-mobilization measure called the Ch’ŏllima (“Flying Horse”) movement that was patterned on China’s Great Leap Forward of 1958–60. Subsequently, in the early 1960s, programs were instituted in agricultural and industrial management, called respectively the Ch’ongsan-ni Method and Taean Work System. In the late 1990s the country adopted the official…
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…a mass-mobilization measure called the Ch’ŏllima (“Flying Horse”) movement that was patterned on China’s Great Leap Forward of 1958–60. Subsequently, in the early 1960s, programs were instituted in agricultural and industrial management, called respectively the Ch’ongsan-ni Method and Taean Work System. In the late 1990s the country adopted the official…
Read More