ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve
ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve
No one could have foreseen the devastating earthquake that struck Myanmar just after lunchtime on 28 March 2025. The powerful magnitude 7.7 quake, with its epicentre located about 20 kilometres northeast of Mandalay Region, sent shock waves across much of the country and even reached its neighbouring countries. The strong 6.4 magnitude aftershock followed just 12 minutes later, accompanied by numerous subsequent tremors that continued to shake the country.
Amid efforts to enhance disaster response efficiency, the APTERR Secretariat team, led by General Manager Dr. Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, visited the Luzon Disaster Resource Center (LDRC) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Pasay City, the Philippines, on 8 September 2025 to learn about the ‘Family Food Packs (FFPs)’ programme and observe its operational process in preparing emergency food supplies for national distribution.
The People’s Republic of China (P.R. China), Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK) reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to enhancing food security in Lao PDR by providing 1,050 MT of rice to assist people affected by widespread floods and landslides, which have caused severe destruction and agricultural damage across the country.
The 50-MT rice contributed by the Republic of Korea has been quickly released through the automatic trigger mechanism under the APTERR Tier 3 programme to provide immediate emergency assistance to people severely affected by floods and landslides in Lao PDR. These disasters were caused by a series of tropical storms, including the recent tropical storm Wipha.
The APTERR Secretariat visited Lao PDR on 17-18 July 2025 to bolster collaboration with the Lao government led by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) on emergency preparedness and response through the APTERR activities.
Copyright © 2023 apterr.org All Rights Reserved.