On 30 March 2022, Mr. Guo Chuanwei, Director of the Trade and Investment Division (TID) of the ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), attended the online forum on “Promoting Food Security by Combating Soil Degradation in the Asia-Pacific”.

As a side event of the 9th Asia-Pacific Forum on Sustainable Development, the event was co-organised by the Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of Cambodia to ESCAP and the ESCAP Centre for Sustainable Agricultural Mechanisation (ESCAP-CSAM).

Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of ESCAP, Mr. Ouk Sorphorn, Ambassador of Cambodia to Thailand and Permanent Representative of Cambodia to ESCAP, and Mr. Han Zhiqiang, Ambassador of China to Thailand, attended the event and delivered remarks.

Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana expressed her appreciation of the Global Development Initiative proposed by China and hoped that all parties could further deepen cooperation on innovation, enhance experience sharing, and actively seek solutions to jointly develop a resilient and sustainable food security system.

Ambassador Ouk Sorphorn said that in working towards an early achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), it is necessary to strengthen coordinated governance in combating soil degradation, food security, biodiversity and climate change, and strengthen Public-Private Partnerships (PPP).

Ambassador Han Zhiqiang said in his remarks that the Global Development Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping has put forward cooperation proposals and plans for eight priority areas including food security. China welcomes the active participation of all countries to jointly strengthen food supply capacity, improve food security governance system, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Representatives of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), China Economic and Social Council, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Cambodia, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests of Bhutan, Malaysian Agriculture Research and Development Institute, Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development and other governmental departments, international organisations and social groups exchanged views and shared insights on topics including soil conservation, precision agriculture and food security.