The representative research institutes in North Korea are the Academy of Science and the laboratories of major universities. The National Academy of Science consists of headquarters, Academy of Medicinal Science, Academy of Forestry Science, and Academy of Agricultural Science. Under the authority of the National Academy of Science, Central Information Agency for Science and Technology (CIAST) has built up a database system integrating all the science technology data to provide scientific and technological information. The major universities of North Korea include Kim Il-sung University, Kim Chaek University of Technology, Pyongyang Agricultural College, and Wonsan Agricultural College, and an agricultural college is situated in each province. Out of 3,860 plant species in North Korea, 158 species which amounts to approximately 4% of the total are rare and endangered, and deforestation is under a critical situation. The Oriental Medicine (Koryo Medicine) has been well developed using medicinal plants, and practical researches on biotic pesticide are largely conducted as an alternative to tackle the shortage of farming materials. Hereafter, a South-North joint research on the amount of plant resources and the methods of its conservation is needed and the North Korean research areas of biotic pesticide are worth adopting to the South Korean eco-friendly organic agriculture.

• Sang-Cheol Lim
• Wan-Seok Kim