Ministry of Agriculture &
Farmers Welfare
Joint Press Statement of the 4th ASEAN-IndiaMinisterial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry
We, the ASEAN Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry and the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India, held our Fourth ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry  on 12 January 2018 in New Delhi, India. The Meeting was Co-chaired by H.E. Mr. GrisadaBoonrach, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand and H. E. Shri RadhaMohan Singh, Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India.
We were satisfied with the progress made in the implementation of the ASEAN – India Plan of Action  2011-2015 to implement the ASEAN-India Partnership for Peace, Progress and Shared Prosperity. We task our senior officials for the full implementation of the POA, which would help further deepen and enhance the ASEAN-India cooperation in food, agriculture including animal husbandry and fisheries, and forestry as well as contribute towards the achievement of the post 2015 Sustainable Development Goals, and the related goals of the UN Zero Hunger Challenge.
In particular, under the Action Programmeon “Promote Capacity Building, Technology Transfer, and R&D as Mutually Agreed for Global Competence in Agriculture”, four capacity building activities were implemented during the 2013–2015, on  IT Application for Agricultural Extension ,  National seed quality control system,  Organic certification for fruit and vegetables and  Conventional and molecular techniques for diagnosis of trans-boundary animal diseases. We also noted that training on Buffalo production using reproductive biotechnology was conducted. We look forward to the implementation of more capacity building programmes in 2018 on the Empowerment of ASEAN and Indian women through cooperatives, and Managing food security and price volatility.
We supported the prioritization of joint collaborative projects in the areas of  Agroforestry interventions for livelihood opportunities,  Demonstration and exchange of farm implement and machinery, and  Genetic improvement of parental lines and development of heterotic rice hybrids.
We noted the endorsement of theMedium Term Plan of Action for ASEAN-India Cooperation in Agriculture and Forestry for 2016–2020 by the SOM AMAF and India. In this connection, we underscore the importance of addressing Climate Change as it negatively impacts food security, and lookforward to cooperation on exchanging expertise as to promote enhanced resilience of natural systems, and improve the adaptive capacities of people to cope with environmental hazards.
We look forward to the implementation of the 3rd Exchange visit for Farmers between ASEAN and India in order to provide opportunities for ASEAN and Indian farmers and fishers, including young and women farmers, to learn and develop more efficient farming practices and management skills through information sharing.
We agreed to meet again at the 5th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry to be held in Brunei Darussalam in 2019.
We express our sincere appreciation to the Government and People of India for the warm hospitality and excellent arrangements made for the Meeting.
The Meeting was attended by:
i. H.E. DatoPadukaSidek Ali, High Commissioner of Brunei Darussalam in New Delhi, Brunei Darussalam
ii. H.E. San Vanty, Under Secretary of State, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Cambodia
iii. Mr. HariPriyono, Secretary General of the Ministry of Agriculture, Republic of Indonesia
iv. H.E. LianeThykeo, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Lao PDR
v. H.E. Dato’ Sri Tajuddin bin Abdul Rahman, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry, Malaysia
vi. H.E. Dr. Aung Thu, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation, Republicofthe Union of Myanmar
vii. H.E. Maria Teresita C. Daza, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, New Delhi Philippine Embassy, Philippines
viii. Mr. Lim Kok Thai, Chief Executive Officer of the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority, Singapore
ix. H.E. Mr. GrisadaBoonrach, Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand
x. H.E. Tran Thanh Nam, Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam
xi. H.E. Shri Radha Mohan Singh, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, India
xii. H.E. VongthepArthakaivalvatee, Deputy Secretary General of ASEAN for Socio-Cultural Community, the ASEAN Secretariat.
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