The 11th Meeting of ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) Council, the first onsite Council Meeting after the COVID-19 pandemic, was held on 25-26 April 2023 in Seoul, the Republic of Korea (ROK). Organised by the APTERR Secretariat and hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) of the ROK, the meeting marked the achievements of APTERR, including a successful improvement of its operations to enhance regional food security through the APTERR mechanism.
Representative of APTERR Council from member countries
(Bottom row from L-R) Mr. Taira Matsumoto, Director General, Crop Production Policy Department, Crop Production Council Bureau, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan; Mr. Khanh VU, Executive Officer, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) of Viet Nam; Mr. Vinit Atisook, Deputy Secretary General, Office of Agricultural Economics of Thailand; Dr. Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, General Manager of APTERR Secretariat; Mr. Han Young Jeon, Director General of Food Grain Policy office, MAFRA of the ROK; Dr. Khairunnisa Haji Omar Ali, Senior Plant Breeder/Acting Assistant Director of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture and Agrifood Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism (MPRT) of Brunei Darussalam; Dr. Rachmi Widiriani, Director For Food Distribution and Reserve, National Food Agency (NFA) of Indonesia; Ms. Bin ZHANG, Associate Researcher, MARA of People’s Republic of China;
(Top row from L-R) Ms. Li-Lian Tai, Deputy Director, International Relations Divisions, Singapore Food Agency (SFA) of Singapore; Mr. Sang Moon Byun, Director, Food Grain Policy Division, MAFRA of the ROK; Mr. Roderico R. Bioco, Administrator, National Food Authority (NFA) of the Philippines; Dr. Soulaphone Inthavong, Deputy Director General, Department of Planning and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) of Lao PDR; Mr. Savun Che, Deputy Secretary General, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Cambodia; Dr. Siti Kamariah Ghazali, Deputy Undersecretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security of Malaysia; and Mr. Thura Soe, Deputy Director General, Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation (MOALI) of Myanmar
This two-day meeting was co-chaired by Mr. Vinit Atisook, Deputy Secretary General of the Office of Agricultural Economics, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and the representative of the APTERR Council member from Thailand, together with Mr. Sang Moon Byun, Director of Food Grain Policy Division of the MAFRA and the APTERR Council member from the ROK. The participants included the representatives from the APTERR member countries, the ASEAN Food Security Reserve Board (AFSRB) Secretariat, the ASEAN Food Security Information System (AFSIS) Secretariat, and the APTERR Secretariat.
Dr. Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, General Manager of the APTERR Secretariat, reported the implementation of APTERR activities in 2022 and updated the current operation while some member countries informed the Meeting on the Tier 3 programme implementation in their countries. The participants had a fruitful discussion and actively exchanged views for further improvement of APTERR activities.
Mr. Han Young Jeon, Director General of Food Grain Policy office, MAFRA of the ROK
The meeting was highly productive and successfully achieved its objective of discussing the direction of the APTERR’ operation in providing a rapid response to the emergency requirement as well as for other humanitarian purposes. The increasing recognition of APTERR mechanism as a highly effective tool in strengthening food security and achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was also acknowledged by the meeting. All the members further agreed to continually support the improvement of the APTERR mechanism to help prevent food insecurity as well as alleviate the sufferings of vulnerable people in time of food crisis including the COVID-19 pandemic.
In this meeting of APTERR Council, two emerging issues were also addressed. Firstly, the MAFRA of the ROK proposed the inclusion of wheat as another commodity to be managed under the APTERR, which would expand the scope of the organisation's responsibilities. Secondly, there was a proposal to subsume the AFSIS within APTERR activity for more efficient collaboration towards ensuring food security.
Meanwhile, the delegates from Japan announced the secondment of Japanese Expert, namely Mr. Akinori Ando, to work with the APTERR Secretariat from 2023-2025. This secondment demonstrates the commitment of Japan to support the APTERR's goals and shows Japan’s significant step towards strengthening cooperation and collaboration among APTERR member countries.
In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) of the People’s Republic of China announced the country’s commitment to host the 12th Meeting of the APTERR council towards the end of the meeting, which will provide an opportunity for all the members to collaborate and address pressing issues related to food security in the region.
After that, the MAFRA of the ROK organised a wonderful excursion to some of Seoul's iconic landmarks. The site visit included the awe-inspiring Gyeongbokgung Palace, one of the most magnificent palaces in the city, and a journey to the top of the N Seoul Tower (also known as Namsan Tower or Seoul Tower), one of the most iconic landmarks in the country.
All Delegates from member countries
Handover co-chairmanship from Singapore and Japan to Thailand and the ROK
(L-R) Dr. Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, General Manager of APTERR Secretariat; Mr. Vinit Atisook, Deputy Secretary General of the Office of Agricultural Economics, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and the representative of the APTERR Council member from Thailand; and Mr. Sang Moon Byun, Director of Food Grain Policy Division of the MAFRA and the APTERR Council member from the ROK
(L-R) Ms. Kolanya Thammapattarakul, Head of Finance Sub-Division of APTERR Secretariat and Mr. Akinori Ando, new Japanese Expert to APTERR Secretariat
Mr. Han Young Jeon, Director General of Food Grain Policy office, MAFRA of the ROK and Dr. Choomjet Karnjanakesorn, General Manager of APTERR Secretariat
Delegates from Brunei Darussalam
(L-R) Ms. Bibi Khadizah Rusli, Agronomist and Ms. Khairunnisa Haji Omar Ali, Senior Plant Breeder and Acting Assistant Director of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture and Agrifood
Delegates from Cambodia
(L-R) Mr. Savun Che, Deputy Secretary General, Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries and Mr. Kompheak Neou, Chief Office, Department of International Cooperation
Delegates from Indonesia
(L-R) Dr Rachmi Widiriani, Director For Food Distribution and Reserve and Prof. Risfaheri, Head of Bureau for Planning, Cooperation and Public Relation, National Food Agency (NFA)
Delegates from Lao PDR
(Bottom row from L-R) Dr. Soulaphone Inthavong, Deputy Director General and Mr.Sakpasit Manibod Technical, Department of Planning and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF)
(Top row from L-R) Ms. KhamEuay Thammavong, Desk Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Phosavanh Thammavongxay, Deputy Division, Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare
Delegates from Malaysia
(L-R) Ms. Siti Kamariah Binti Ghazali, Deputy Undersecretary and Ms.Nurul Najihah Binti Mohd Nasir, Assistant Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security
Delegates from Myanmar
Mr. Thura Soe, Deputy Director General, Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation
Delegates from the Philippines
(L-R) Mr. John Robert Hermano, Special Assistant Adiministrator and Mr. Roderico R. Bioco, Administrator, National Food Authority (NFA)
Delegates from Singapore
Ms. Li-Lian Tai, Deputy Director, International Relations Divisions, Singapore Food Agency (SFA)
Delegates from Thailand
Ms. Hirunya Srasom, Director, International Agricultural Economics Division, Coordinator Office of Agricultural Economics, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MOAC)
Delegates from Viet Nam
Mr. Khanh VU, Executive Officer, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)
Delegates from People’s Republic of China
(L-R) Mr. Lihua Li, Second Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ms. Bin ZHANG, Associate Researcher, MARA
Delegates from Japan
(L-R) Mr. Kenji Okuhira, Director, Grain Quality Assurance Officer, Grain Trade and Operation Division, and Mr. Taira Matsumoto, Director General, Crop Production Policy Department, Crop Production Bureau, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)
Delegates from the ROK
(L-R) Mr. IL-Soo Kim, Deputy Director, Food Grain Policy Division and Mr. Sang Moon Byun, Director, Food Grain Policy Division, MAFRA
Mr. Sang Moon Byun, Director, Food Grain Policy Division, MAFRA
(L-R) Ms. Nuttiya Dithphol, Trade Officer, Senior Professional Level, Department of Foreign Trade and AFSRB Secretariat; Ms. Waraporn Saelee, AFSIS Manager of the AFSIS Secretariat; and Ms. Kolanya Thammapattarakul, Head of Finance Sub-Division of APTERR Secretariat
Site visit at Gyeongbokgung Palace and the N Seoul Tower
