DHAKA, Mar 9 (NNN-BSS) – The 36th session of the Asia-Pacific regional conference (APRC) of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), kicked off in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, yesterday.
The conference brings together 46 Asia-Pacific FAO member states and a wide range of observers, such as representatives of United Nations bodies, to discuss current country and regional priorities and pressing issues in the region, such as, the impact of COVID-19, the state of agriculture, natural resources management, food security and nutrition.
FAO officials said, government ministers from 42 countries in Asia and the Pacific are expected to join in-person and virtual interactions, to reach consensus inter-alia, on the way forward, following the damage dealt by the global pandemic to lives and livelihoods of those involved in the food and agriculture sectors, in the world’s most populous region.
They said, it will also pave the way to highlight examples of partnerships, innovation and digital technologies, that are helping to improve food security and nutrition across the region, as well as, regional and global policy and regulatory matters.
On the first day of the conference yesterday, senior officials, agriculture secretaries and other high-ups, participated in different sessions and discussed regional and global policy and regulatory matters.
“FAO 36th session of APRC is a unique opportunity for FAO to work together with its partners, including governments, to promote one health and post COVID-19 recovery, in relation to the transformation of sustainable, nutrition-sensitive and resilient food and agriculture system,” said Aziz Elbehri, senior economist of FAO.
Bangladeshi Agriculture Minister, Abdur Razzaque, said, Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, will officially inaugurate the event at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC), which is also known as Bangladesh-China friendship conference centre, in Dhaka, tomorrow, although the conference opened yesterday.
The ministerial meetings will be held tomorrow, Mar 10 and 11.
On the sidelines of the ministerial meetings, he said, stalls will be set up for countries showcasing at the BICC.
