On 16 March 2022, the APTERR Secretariat led by Mr. Chanpithya Shimphalee, General Manager and Mr. Toshiki Tojo, Japanese Expert attended the meeting hosted by the National Food Authority (NFA) under the supervision of ATTY. Judy Carol L. Dansal, Administrator, on the evaluation of the implementation of 2 MT pre-cooked rice from Japan to the Philippines under the APTERR Tier 3 programme.
The meeting was taken place at the NFA Region I office located in La Union province of the Philippines. The representatives from the NFA including Mr. Gerry J. Ambrosio, Assistant Administrator for Finance and Administration, Mr. Elimar C. Regindin, Acting Department Manager for Operations Coordination. Mr. Piolito C. Santos, Regional Manager of NFA Region I and Ms. Rosalyn D. Comia, Acting Division Manager, also participated in this event.
The meeting progressed in a notably fruitful manner with several crucial information and developing points being discussed for the more effective implementation of the pre-cooked rice under the APTERR programme. Subsequently, a new initiative ‘School Distribution Programme’ under the Tier 3 programme introduced by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan was also presented at the meeting.
The Philippines received the total of 2-MT pre-cooked rice from the MAFF, Japan through the APTERR Tier 3 pre-positioned programme in the fiscal year 2020. The pre-cooked rice was successfully distributed to alleviate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security in the National Capital Region (NCR) and the nearby provinces of Bulacan and Cavite.
