Photo from Office of the Press Secretary’s Facebook
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Saturday said that the country is ready to ensure food security in the region together with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) and other partners.
Marcos made the statement during the 25th ASEAN Plus Three Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
He also reiterated the Philippines’ commitment to the Asean Plus Three (Apt) Cooperation Work Plan 2023-2027, which is a framework for the fulfillment of the Asean’s community vision of peace and prosperity for the next five years.
“Attaining food self-sufficiency and security by seeking innovative solutions through adoption of new technologies and enhanced connectivity to national, regional and global value supply chains, this must be one of our utmost priorities in the region,” said Marcos.
Marcos added that the Philippines remains committed to the Asean Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (Apterr). According to Apterr’s website, it is a cooperative that helps Asean nations during times of calamities and other humanitarian crises.
Photo from Office of the Press Secretary’s Facebook
“The Philippines reaffirms our commitment to actively engage in the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve or Apterr. Apterr is extremely beneficial to our countries. We are vulnerable to many hazards and natural calamities due to topography and geographic location,” Marcos stated.
Marcos is currently in Cambodia to attend the APT Summit. The APT consists of the Asean member nations (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam) as well as three other countries, namely Japan, China and South Korea.
According to the APT’s website, the summit allows the countries to discuss matters of trade and investment as well as sociocultural cooperation.
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