The APEC Agricultural Technical Cooperation Working Group held its annual meeting on the third day of the 2017 APEC Food Security Week underway in Cần Thơ, seeking ways to strengthen technical co-operation in agriculture between member economies.

The annual meetings review the previous year’s activities and discuss the working group’s priorities and the next stage work plans, according to Dr Gong Xifeng, interim lead shepherd of the ATCWG.

He underlined the importance of the meeting, saying it was a chance for ATCWG to review and reshape its orientation and co-operation mechanisms.

Trần Kim Long, director general of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s international co-operation department, said the Mekong Delta is a great example to highlight the importance of the work of APEC-ATCWG and draw up joint vision and mission of food security and sustainable agricultural development.

"The Mekong Delta has seen tremendous progress over the last few decades in providing food for our economy and income for our people. Technological progress has played a key role in the successful development of the rice sector here, and we have strongly benefited from co-operation with our partners in the region."

However, it is set to face many challenges like urbanisation, climate change and overuse of natural resources, according to Long.

The challenges are not confined to Việt Nam, but are shared by its partners in APEC.

"We should treat these challenges as opportunities to formulate a common and collaborative response," he said.

The ATCWG is composed of government officials and experts from academia.

The objective of the working group is to enhance the contribution of agriculture to the bloc’s economic growth and social well-being by promoting technical co-operation between its members.

This year ATCWG will continue to promote agricultural information sharing and co-operation with regard to farm technology, and strengthen communications and capacity building in agricultural technology.

During the APEC Food Security Week held in Cần Thơ, the working group will organise a training course on mycotoxin prevention and control in food and feed items.

Source: VNS. Date: 2017-08-21

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