Over the last two decades, the border with China has become North Korea’s major window to the outside world. This border, which until 2010 had been essentially unprotected and which remains quite porous nowadays, has served as a channel for ideas, fashions, images and knowledge to get into the hitherto tightly sealed North Korea. However, over the last 10 years, another window opened: the Kaesong Industrial Complex (KIC).

The KIC is located just north of the DMZ in the city of Kaesong. At present, there are almost 55,000 North Korean workers employed by the 125 South Korean companies operating there. These workers produce everything from clothes to household items.