Agriculture Secretary and Head of Philippine Delegation William Dar reaffirmed its commitment to actively engage with China, Japan, and Korea during the 19th ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry plus Three (AMAF+3) Meeting held on October 16, 2019 in Brunei Darussalam.
Dar also expressed his gratitude to the three countries in terms of the assistance that they have continuously provided the Philippines.
The Philippine AMAF leader recognized the support of the Government of Japan, through the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (MAFF-Japan), for the 560 metric tons rice donation under the Tier 3 Program of the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR).
“The donation was distributed last October 5, 2019 to the families affected by tropical typhoons “Bailu” and “Podul” that hit the northern part of the Philippines, particularly in Ilocos Norte and Calasiao, Pangasinan,” he said.
APTERR, according to Dar, as a regional food security cooperation scheme among nations, is extremely beneficial to countries, including the Philippines, which are vulnerable to many hazards and natural calamities due to topography and geographic location.
Dar reaffirmed the commitment of the Philippines to deposit the Certificate of Ratification, Acceptance and Approval to the ASEAN Secretary General relative to the Protocol to Amend Attachment 2 of the APTERR Agreement.
For Korea, Dar looks forward to the adoption of the Declaration on Forest Cooperation for Peace and Prosperity at the ASEAN-Republic of Korea (ROK) High Level Meeting at the end of this month, which marks a milestone during the 30th year of ASEAN-ROK bilateral relations this year.
“I believe that sound forest cooperation among the ROK, the ASEAN, and the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO) will greatly contribute to the achievement of forest and other sustainable development goals,” said Dar.
Dar expressed his appreciation to China for its sustained conduct of capacity building programs for ASEAN member-states and for organizing forums that serve as platforms to discuss regional concerns on agriculture and food security. ### (Rita dela Cruz, DA Communications Group)
