By Vijian Paramasivam
PHNOM PENH, March 1 (Bernama) -- Three key donors - China, Japan and South Korea - reaffirmed their commitment to continuing emergency rice supply to strengthen food security during climate crisis in the ASEAN region.
The ASEAN Plus Three nations, along with ASEAN members, agreed to provide rice to support the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) initiative to ensure adequate food supply during unprecedented emergencies.
At the 13th Meeting of the APTERR Council in Tokyo last month members prioritised food security for the region, which is home to about 670 million people.
Key topics touched on responses to severe disasters, impacts of climate changes, poverty alleviation and geopolitical conflicts affecting the global food supply chain, according to APTERR’s media statement.
The Bangkok-based APTERR Secretariat’s General Manager, Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, said new initiatives to address unforeseen challenges to food security in Southeast Asia topped the agenda.
“Several initiatives were productively discussed to explore their feasibility and implementation in strengthening the existing APTERR mechanism.
“Most of the initiatives align with the recommendations from a systematic review conducted by the Asian Development Bank,” Choomjet told Bernama.
Southeast Asian countries are vulnerable to natural disasters - earthquakes, seasonal typhoons, monsoons, excessive flooding, tsunamis, landslides and volcanic eruptions.
These natural hazards have destroyed crops and rice production and displaced thousands of people from their homes, besides destroying key infrastructures like communication and power lines.
“The APTERR Secretariat will continue working closely with the member countries and the relevant organisations to implement these (rice supply) initiatives.
“Any measures that can be carried out immediately will be expedited to further improve the APTERR mechanism,” said Choomjet.
As a regional initiative, APTERR plays a critical role in strengthening food security during emergencies and addressing poverty alleviation and malnourishment.
Since the signing of the APTERR agreement in 2011, nearly 50,000 metric tonnes of rice assistance have been released to over five million people in Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.
The rice donations primarily come from the Plus Three countries -- Japan, China and South Korea and with contributions from the ASEAN countries, namely Malaysia and Thailand.
Last year, 5,622 metric tonnes of rice, donated by Japan, China and South Korea, were released to assist disaster-affected people and alleviate poverty in Laos, Myanmar and the Philippines.
Currently, over 7,500 metric tonnes of APTERR rice stock, contributed by the three nations have been pre-positioned in Laos, Myanmar and the Philippines to respond to future disasters.
The next APTERR Council Meeting will be hosted by Cambodia in 2026.
-- BERNAMA
