COA Minister Chen Writes Poem to Express His Testimonial to APEC Ministerial Meeting

The Council of Agriculture (COA) said the first APEC Ministerial Meeting on Food Security held in Niigata, Japan concluded successfully on October 17, 2010 after ministers and representatives responsible for food securities from 21 APEC economies formulating regional cooperation strategies for the two goals of “sustainable agricultural development” and “promoting trade and investment in agriculture and gaining access to food supply” and adopting Niigata Declaration on Food Security and 62 action plans. The establishment of APEC Emergency Food Reserve Mechanism and five other actions plans proposed by Minister Chen were included in the Niigata Declaration after being endorsed by many APEC economies, ensuring concrete contributions to food security in the Asia-Pacific region.

Moreover, the conclusion report on the APEC Forum on Food Security held in Taipeiin August 2010 was listed as the No. 2 document of the APEC Ministerial Meeting, representing APEC’s recognition of Taiwan ’s sponsoring the forum. Minister Chen delivered his testimonial in the closing ceremony of the Niigatameeting, thanking Japan for its hosting of the meeting and thoughtful arrangements of related activities. He also read the poem “Dance of Niigata” he wrote in Chinese the previous night, praising Niigatabeing transformed into Japan ’s No. 1 place of rice (Koshihikari, a variety of rice) production through both the efforts of farmers and the government, which has dedicated to preserve rice cultural heritage, and expressing the hope that all APEC ministers will “work practically to live up to expectations of the people.” His remarks met with an enthusiastic response from APEC ministers before they concluded the Ministerial Meeting in a warm and emotional atmosphere.

APEC Economies Jointly Formulate Strategy to Ensure Asia-Pacific Area Food Security

The COA noted that under the impact of global climate changes, high energy prices, development of biomass energy in many countries and increased demand for food by emerging economies, APEC convened the first Ministerial Meeting on Food Security on October 16-17, 2010 in Niigata , Japan to ensure food security and provide people in APEC economies with stable living conditions. APEC ministers and representatives responsible for food security issued the Niigata Declaration after the meeting and passed 62 actions plans for member economies and related APEC forums to jointly carry out in the next five years, ensuring food security in the Asia-Pacific region by achieving the two major goals of “sustainable agricultural development” and “promoting trade and investment in agriculture and gaining access to food supply.”

With regard to sustainable agricultural development, the action plans formulated by the ministers include increasing agricultural productivity, responding to the challenge of climate changes, strengthening agriculture’s capability of coping with natural disasters, developing rural communities, and proper management of natural resources. In order to achieve the goal of “promoting trade and investment in agriculture and gaining access to food supply,” the ministers agreed on such cooperation strategies as facilitating trade and investment in agriculture, strengthen confidence in agricultural markets, improving the environment for agribusiness and management of food security.

Taiwan Proposes Establishment of APEC Emergency Food Reserve Mechanism and Five Other Action Plans to Ensure Food Security

Minister Chen told the Ministerial Meeting that Taiwansponsored the APEC Forum on Food Security in Taipei last August because it has attached much importance to food security. Some 100 government officials and representatives of agriculture and academia from APEC economies attended the forum and its conclusion report could be provided to the Ministerial Meeting for reference. To effectively enhance agricultural productivity, he said, APEC economies should strengthen agricultural infrastructure and investment and intensify and promote agricultural technology R&D. So Taiwan proposed four actions plans for utilization of native vegetable and food crop genetic resources, post-harvest treatment, development of anti-stress breeding, and agricultural and irrigation techniques. Moreover, Taiwan is willing to share with other APEC economies its experience of disaster prevention because many disasters had befallen the country, including Typhoon Morakot which wreaked havoc with 3,000 millimeters of rain in a short time last year.

Minister Chen also recommended that APEC economies should keep trade smoothly in the framework of World Trade Organization and jointly formulate balanced plans to keep food exporting countries from adopting food export restrictions to harm the interests of food importing countries when there is a shortage of food supply and its prices are high, in order to achieve the goal of maintaining the stable growth of regional trade and ensuring food security.

Since global warming and extreme weathers still cause frequent unusual natural disasters and food security in the APEC region is facing unprecedented threat, Minister Chen appealed APEC economies to establish a cooperation mechanism to effectively ensure regional food security and proposed the establishment of self-managed, risk-sharing APEC Emergency Food Reserve Mechanism.

Chen also had bilateral meetings with other APEC ministers during the Niigata Ministerial Meeting, which will help strengthen agricultural cooperation and exchanges between Taiwan and other APEC economies.