President Kim Il Sung said.
“In the past our country had no machine-building industry. But today it is fully capable of producing by itself not only medium- and small-sized machines and equipment but also metallurgical and power-generating equipment, motor vehicles, tractors, excavators and other types of large machinery and equipment. We now have our own machine-building industry capable of promoting an overall technical revolution in our country.”
In the 1950s after the war, the people in the DPRK were faced with a pressing task of realizing mechanization of farming by hastening technical transformation of the rural economy.
At that time, a large number of tractors were necessary for the task in the DPRK.
What was the key to settling the task in that period when the DPRK had no processing industry including machine-building industry?
There were two options of purchasing tractors from others and manufacturing them on one’s own. As regards with the first option, it was too unfeasible one in view of the then actual conditions of the DPRK.
In order to relieve peasants from backbreaking labour and guarantee farm work, the DPRK should have 30 000-40 000 tractors at the moment. In case of buying every year 1 000 tractors from other countries, it would take a long time of 30-40 years. Furthermore, the DPRK was short of funds to buy them all and there was no country that would sell the tractors as desired by the former. It was not the way to choose.
The second option was to manufacture tractors on one’s own. The DPRK had little knowledge of manufacturing them as it had to start with nothing, but it was the only option that enabled the DPRK to mechanize agriculture as soon as possible and brining about a sharp increase in agricultural production.
We should manufacture tractors on our own and we have not other option.
This was the decision made by the Workers’ Party of Korea and the DPRK people.
Of course, it was never easy for the DPRK to manufacture tractors on its own.
At that time, the DPRK had no design and experience nor satisfactory machine-building industry needed in manufacturing tractors.
Furthermore, some people were displeased with manufacturing of tractors while denouncing that it was of no need to build a tractor plant in such a small country as the DPRK.
The DPRK people were not moved by obstacles and slanders.
They tackled the manufacturing of tractor with resolute determination that they would surely do it by themselves.
The workers and technicians in the DPRK made strenuous efforts despite the repeated failures, and at last they manufactured the first tractor. Later, they could manufacture tractors in large quantity.
Having a firm conviction in manufacturing tractors, the DPRK workers easily manufactured such machineries and equipment as tractor, bulldozer, crane and ship.
Indeed, just was the measure taken by the WPK and the government of the Republic which thought they had no other option and decided to do it with self-reliance.
With self-reliance, the DPRK could fully demonstrate to the world superiority of the independent national economy while remaining unchanged in any world economy fluctuation and is now striving to attain a high goal of building a economic giant.
