APTERR
Asean Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve
The History of APTERR
The ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) is a regional cooperation with the aims to strengthen food security, poverty alleviation, and malnourishment eradication within the region without distorting normal trade in the global market. The common goal of the APTERR Parties is the assurance of food security in the ASEAN Plus the People’s Republic of China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.
Dates back to the food price crisis in the 2000’s, concerns were raised that high uncertainty and instability of food price would be repeatedly happened. In 2002, the East Asia Emergency Rice Reserve (EAERR) pilot project under the cooperation among the ASEAN Member States and the People’s Republic of China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea, was established with the aim to conduct a mechanism to realise the importance of food security to meet the emergency requirements needed. Though the idea of regional food reserve cooperation was formed in 1979 when the ASEAN Food Security Reserve (AFSR) Agreement was signed initiating the earmarked rice system of 87,000 metric tonnes named as the ASEAN Emergency Rice Reserve (AERR), no release or cooperation pact was formed until the establishment of EAERR pilot project.
With the earmarked reserve increased to 787,000 metric tonnes, EAERR activities were conducted by its Secretariat with the supervision of the EAERR Project Steering Committees residing one representative from each member country. Its Secretariat was hosted by the Government of Thailand. During the initial stage of the project, the very same Government of Thailand provided in-kind contribution to the project in term of office spaces and personnel. The project was financially supported by the Government of Japan. The pilot project saw the total of over 10,000 metric tonnes of rice implemented through Tier 1 and Tier 3 in the ASEAN region.
Meanwhile, the success of the pilot project enlightened the importance of food security into ASEAN Plus Three region. The ASEAN Plus Three Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry decided to expand the pilot project into a permanent mechanism and terminated EAERR pilot project in 2010. Consequently, the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) was established in order to be developed into a permanent mechanism and entered its preparatory stage with the earmarked reserves of 787,000 metric tons as committed during EAERR pilot project.
The APTERR Parties consists of the agencies representing the governments of ASEAN Member States, the People’s Republic of China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. The APTERR Agreement was signed by the ASEAN Plus Three Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF+3) during the 11th Meeting of the ASEAN Plus Three Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (11th AMAF+3) on 7 October 2011 in Jakarta, Indonesia. The APTERR Agreement entered into force on 12 July 2012 after ratification from the APTERR Parties.
On 28 September 2012, the 12th Meeting of AMAF+3 in Vientiane, Lao PDR had a consensus to host the APTERR Secretariat office in Thailand. The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (MOAC) of Thailand tasked the Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE) to provide the office space for the APTERR Secretariat while acting as the coordinating agency between the Host Country and the APTERR Secretariat.
The APTERR was officially established itself as a permanent mechanism on 28-29 March 2013 as the 1st Meeting of APTERR Council was held in Bangkok, Thailand. The occasion also marked the official launch of the APTERR Secretariat office in Bangkok on 29 March 2013. The implementation of the APTERR Secretariat since then has been financially supported by the Operational Cost account contributed by the APTERR Parties.
On 6 August 2016, the National Legislation Assembly of Thailand enacted the Act on Protection of Operations of the APTERR Secretariat. The enforcement of the Act would ensure the protection of the activities of the APTERR Secretariat under the national law of Thailand.
As the first five-year phase (2013-2017) of financial contribution to the APTERR Fund was terminated in 2017, the Special Senior Officials Meeting (SSOM) of the 38th Meeting of the AMAF and the SSOM-16th Meeting of AMAF+3 agreed that the financial contribution of the same amount to the Operational Cost of the APTERR Fund shall be continued for a further five-year phase (2018-2022), whereas additional contribution to the Endowment Fund shall be exclusive.
The Meetings also agreed that the main APTERR Agreement does not need the amendment; however, the financial arrangement reflected in the Attachment 2 of the APTERR Agreement needs to be amended. Accordingly, the draft Protocol to Amend the Attachment 2 of the APTERR Agreement was prepared by the ASEAN Secretariat and considered by the SOM-AMAF+3.
Later, the Protocol to Amend the Attachment 2 of the APTERR Agreement was successfully signed by the AMAF+3 at the 18th Meeting of AMAF+3 held in Hanoi, Viet Nam on 12 October 2018. As a consequence, the second phase of the financial contribution as reflected in the Attachment 2 of the APTERR Agreement has started in 2018.