North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called for nurturing offshore fish farming in the port city of Sinpho, state media said Tuesday, as the North seeks to develop backward provinces to narrow widening economic gaps among regions.

Kim visited a construction site for an offshore fish farm in the coastal city in South Hamgyong Province on Monday and presided over a meeting where developing the envisioned farm "into a new fine model of shallow-sea culture" was discussed, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

During his visit, Kim stressed the importance of developing regional economies to drive overall economic growth and asserted that Sinpho could become the "richest city" in the North with the fish farming project.

"Saying that if the scallop and kelp farming is conducted well in the waters off Phungo-dong area, the city of Sinpho, which is poor in economic power, can become the richest city of the DPRK in three to four years, he expressed his determination to successfully build the Sinpho City Offshore Farm into a model of aquaculture in the new century," the KCNA said.

Kim assigned the construction of the farm to the Korean People's Army, it added.

The latest visit came as North Korea has been seeking to develop the economy in areas outside of Pyongyang after Kim vowed to build modernized factories in 20 counties over the next decade to raise the "basic material and cultural living standards of the people" amid prolonged economic difficulties.

Last week, Kim visited the northern city of Samjiyon and reprimanded senior officials overseeing a major development project, blaming their "irresponsibility" for causing financial losses. (Yonhap)