The ASEAN Post highlights measures to avoid food crisis amid pandemic
The ASEAN Post on May 11 published an article titled “Building food security during the pandemic”, calling on the international community to act immediately to keep food supply chains operating.
Hanoi (VNA) – The ASEANPost on May 11 published an article titled “Building food security during thepandemic”, calling on the internationalcommunity to act immediately to keep food supply chains operating.
The article spotlighted urgent measuresthat countries need to take to ensure food security amid the COVID-19 pandemic,which is seriously affecting agriculture and food processing.
Governments of countries, especially underdeveloped nations, should providecash transfers and safe food distribution channels to ensure that vulnerablecitizens are protected, it said.
Policymakers need to focus on clearing logistics bottlenecks in bothdomestic and international value chains so that food can move freely betweenand within countries, it added.
The article also underlined the necessity to apply technological solutions to agricultural productionand implement self-sufficiency policy to reduce countries’ reliance on foodimports.
At the global level, policymakers must implementfour types of action, including increasing funding for food-relief andsocial-protection measures in poor countries, investing in local agriculturalproduction, alleviating disruptions to global food and agricultural producesupply chains by supporting regional and local logistics hubs, and encouragingthe private sector to fund agro-processing and agri-tech companies, it said.
The article noted that resources should be channelled rapidly toward investmentopportunities that are emerging as a result of the pandemic, especially forinnovative value-chain solutions.
Top ofFormIt said these solutions should be implementedrapidly if the humankind want to prevent a catastrophic food crisis in developingcountries./.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc asked for specific mechanisms and measures to remove the difficulties facing many sectors and parts of the society from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic when he chaired a meeting in Hanoi on April 8.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has approved the resumption of rice export provided that food security must be guaranteed amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, drought and saltwater intrusion.
Leaders attending the online Special ASEAN+3 Summit on COVID-19 response on April 14 shared experience and sought concrete measures to soon stamp out the pandemic.
The Republic of Korea (RoK), China and Japan agreed on May 3 to reinforce the regional financial safety net, along with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), by launching a new financing facility programme meant to extend greater support in case of a financial crisis.
A technical issue combined with an extreme heatwave was blamed for a series of explosions at a military base that killed 20 soldiers and injured several others in Cambodia on April 27, the country’s Ministry of Defence said in a May 2 statement as reported by the Xinhua news agency.
The Customs Department of Thailand is scheduled to commence the collection of value-added tax (VAT) on imported goods sent via postal services, regardless of the goods value, starting in May.
A lecturer from Chulalongkorn University’s Faculty of Medicine has warned Thais to be more vigilant against COVID-19, saying infection rates appeare to be worsening with higher hospital admissions, deaths and severe cases.
Malaysia should harness the collective expertise and resources to drive sustainable growth and development of the halal industry, according to Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz.
Laos has officially restored the 10% value-added tax (VAT) rate starting May 1, in a bid to support the country’s budget revenue and socio-economic development.
The ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) entered its second plenary session in Hanoi on the afternoon of April 23, discussing ways to ensure comprehensive security for the people-centred ASEAN Community.
The first session of the ASEAN Future Forum 2024 (AFF 2024) in Hanoi on April 23 focused on fast and sustainable growth for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC) and the ASEAN Alliance on Carbon Markets (AACM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen collaboration and accelerate the implementation of carbon crediting programmes across Southeast Asia.
ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn reaffirmed ASEAN leaders' commitment to empowering the youth to unleash their full potential when he had a dialogue with ASEAN youth in Hanoi on April 22 on the sidelines of the ASEAN Future Forum (AF 2024).
The Thai Government is being urged to increase the proportion of renewable power generation to more than the target of 50% set in the power development plan (PDP).
The Centre for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation (PVMBG) of Indonesia on April 21 lifted its tsunami advisory issued previously following the eruption of Mount Ruang in Sitaro district of North Sulawesi province.
Thailand expects to export about 1 million tonnes of durian, valued at an estimated 130 billion THB (3.53 billion USD) this year, with most of the shipments to China, according to Minister of Agriculture Thammanat Prompao.
The 72nd meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) and related meetings are being held by the Ministry of Science and Technology’s Intellectual Property Office (IPO) of Vietnam in the central city of Da Nang on April 22-26.
Enhancing regional food security and tackling the pressing challenges of climate change will be key agendas defining Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat (lower house) Johari Abdul told the press on April 19.
At a supermarket in Thailand (Photo: VNA)
