North Korea is facing a serious economic crisis and has so far tackled the issue by making market reforms, leveraging technocrats and reshuffling leadership to rely more greatly on individual expertise.

But last month, North Korean state media also suggested that two other mechanisms are at play: a greater emphasis on public self-criticism and on higher-ups taking responsibility for their failures.

This two-pronged strategy seems to tackle important problems that North Korean officials have to deal with, like the lack of open discussion about what’s going on and the fear of vulnerable lower-level officials