On 20 – 21 February 2024, AFSIS Secretariat in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), and the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Cambodia conducted the Workshop for promote rice planted area and production estimation using space-based technologies at Himawari Hotel, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

In the opening session, it was honored by Mr. Srey Vuthy, Secretary General, MAFF of Cambodia, Mr. Masahiro Hosaka, Deputy Director, MAFF, Japan, Dr. Kei Oyoshi, Senior Researcher, JAXA, and Dr. Sumanya Ngandee, Manager, AFSIS Secretariat to deliver the opening remarks. The workshop was attended by 28 participants from the Department of Planning and Statistics (DPS) staff and the provincial staff, MAFF of Cambodia.
The workshop aims to strengthen the capabilities of officials from the MAFF of Cambodia to utilize remote sensing data for assessing rice cultivation areas and estimating production of rice using the ALOS-2 and Sentinel-2 satellites, especially during the dry season rice of 2023-2024. Additionally, the workshop included an analysis of the 2023-2024 dry season rice cultivation results, comparing with the outcomes from the INAHOR system and the actual rice cultivation area in Cambodia


This analysis was discussed by Mr.Shoji Kimura International Consultant of Strengthening ASEAN Food Security Information System (AFSIS) Function for the Emergency or SAFER project, with participation from DPS staff and provincial staff from MAFF of Cambodia. Furthermore, a field survey was conducted for the accuracy of satellite image interpretation results on off-season rice cultivation in Svay Antor District, Prey Veng Province.

The workshop was successfully completed with the cooperation of DPS of Cambodia, JAXA, MAFF of Japan, and AFSIS Secretariat. The outcomes of this workshop will significantly contribute to refining and enhancing the new validation framework and system of INAHOR. Additionally, it will be beneficial to improving in-country activities under SAFER project which AFSIS also plans to conduct the training workshop related to INHOR activities this year.


On 5–6 March 2026, the AFSIS Secretariat participated in the 14th Meeting of the ASEAN Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR) Council via video conference, hosted by the Kingdom of Cambodia. The meeting brought together representatives from ASEAN Plus Three countries, the ASEAN Secretariat, the ASEAN Food Security Reserve Board (AFSRB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the APTERR Secretariat, and the AFSIS Secretariat to discuss key issues related to regional food security and emergency rice reserves.
On 18 February 2026, the AFSIS Secretariat participated in the international event Google’s “Impact of AI on Global Agriculture,” organized by Google.org at Roseate House, Aerocity, New Delhi, India.
On 12-13 February 2026, the AFSIS Secretariat, in collaboration with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the Remote Sensing Technology Center of Japan (RESTEC), Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) Japan and the Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE), Ministry of Agriculture Cooperatives (MOAC), conducted a workshop conducted a workshop The Promoting Rice Planted Area and Production Estimation Using INAHOR and Space-based Technologies in Thailand at the Meeting Room 2, Innovation Building, 3rd FL, Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE)
The In-Country Workshop on Promoting Rice Planted Area and Production Estimation Using Space-based Technologies in Lao PDR was jointly organized by AFSIS Secretariat, JAXA, MAFF Japan, and MAE Lao PDR under the AFSIS-GIS and SAFE projects. The event was held in Vientiane with hands-on training on 9 February 2026 and a workshop on 10 February 2026.