President Kim Il Sung, who had cared for and loved the children very much, calling them the kings of the country, issued the directive of the Premier of the DPRK on the construction of a children`s palace in Pyongyang in February Juche 39 (1950). Over the past 70 years since then, more than 210 schoolchildren`s palaces and halls and children`s camps have wonderfully been built across the country.
Even under the difficult situations for the building of a new Korea after liberation, the President decided to build a children`s palace with funds donated by patriotic tradesmen and manufacturers and selected the site for its construction at the centre of the capital city.
The construction of the palace, which was temporarily suspended by the Fatherland Liberation War, started again after the war and pushed ahead on a full scale with nationwide concern and assistance under the far-reaching plan and wise leadership of the President. As a result, the Pyongyang Students and Children`s Palace, with some 200 rooms for hobby group activities, 500-odd rooms, a 1 100-seater theatre and gymnasium, was inaugurated in September Juche 52(1963).
True to the lofty intention of the President, Chairman Kim Jong Il energetically led the work to build schoolchildren’s palaces and halls and children’s camps in all the best and scenic places of the country with the Pyongyang Students and Children’s Palace as a model.
Under the warm care of Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un who faithfully carries on the noble view on the younger generation of the President and the Chairman, a large number of extra-curricular education bases including the Mangyongdae Schoolchildren’s Palace and the Songdowon International Children’s Camp have been revamped in line with the requirements of the new century. Many children are now cultivating their dreams and enjoying happiness there, full of hope for the future.
