The Special Senior Officials Meeting of the 45th Meeting of The ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry

The Special Senior Officials Meeting of the 45th Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (Special SOM-45th AMAF) took place on 6 August, 2024 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Datuk Lokman Hakim bin Ali, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Malaysia, took over as Chair of the Special SOM-45th AMAF from Lao PDR while Datuk Azah Hanim binti Ahmad, Deputy Secretary General (Policy), assumed the role of SOM-AMAF Lead for the Malaysian delegation.

As Chair for the Special SOM-45th AMAF, Datuk Lokman led and steered the discussion among ASEAN Member States on programmes, priority deliverables, sectoral cooperation, and collaborative projects with ASEAN Dialogue Partners to achieve the goals and action plans under the ASEAN Cooperation on Food, Agriculture and Forestry. Among the pertinent and key areas of focus that were included, but not limited to, were the promotion of sustainable and circular agriculture, reduction of harmful agrochemicals, crop burning, and the digitalisation of agriculture.

Malaysia hopes that with this Chairmanship, the Special SOM-45th AMAF will strengthen ASEAN’s centrality in pursuing a more sustainable region while addressing the adverse effects of climate change and rising food security issues.

With this in mind, and in preparation for Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025, the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Malaysia has proposed two Priority Economic Deliverables (PEDs) that aim to achieve a more sustainable development of the agriculture and forestry sectors, as well as enhance and strengthen food security in the ASEAN region.

The proposed PEDs under Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship next year are timely and reflective of the current challenges faced by ASEAN. The proposed PEDs are aligned to the theme “Growing Together: Advancing ASEAN Agriculture and Forestry Sustainable Development,” which includes:

i. Development of Outlook for ASEAN Agriculture and Forestry that shall encompass the current scenario and provide future insights to the food, agriculture, and forestry sectors; and
ii. Development of the Plan of Action on Food Security (2026-2030) which is the continuation of the current Plan of Action on Food Security (2021- 2025).

In addition to the Special SOM-45th AMAF Meeting, SOM-AMAF Leaders are also scheduled to meet various ASEAN dialogue partners, namely ASEAN Plus Three (China, Japan, Korea), India, and the Federation of Russia, as well as other international organisations and third parties such as the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), the Council of Palm Oil Producing Countries (CPOPC), and the US-ASEAN Business Council.