North Korean leader Kim Jong Un opened a major political conference dedicated to agricultural improvement, state media reported on Monday, amid outside assessments that the country's chronic food insecurity is getting worse. Recent unconfirmed reports have said an unknown number of North Koreans have died of hunger. But observers have seen no indication of mass deaths or famine in North Korea, though its food shortage has likely deepened due to pandemic-related curbs, persistent international sanctions and its own mismanagements.