On 19-24 May 2024, AFSIS Secretariat was invited to attend the Thirtieth Session of the Asia and Pacific Commission on Agricultural Statistics (APCAS30) This meeting was honorably hosted by Nepal’s Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and its National Statistics Office. The session was attended by 115 participants including 78 delegates from 31 APCAS member countries 4 non-member countries, and 37 observers from 6 organizations.
2 representatives from AFSIS Secretariat attended the meeting as observers which were Mr. Charapon Chantorn, Deputy AFSIS Manager, and Mr. Yasuhiro Miyake AFSIS Expert
The core purposes of the meeting are to discuss the development of food and agricultural statistics in FAO member countries of the Asia and Pacific region and to be informed about FAO activities during the preceding biennium, particularly in Asia and the Pacific region.
The prominent themes of APCAS30 focused on the progress and new developments measuring farm-based Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicators, using earth observations for food and agriculture statistics, using innovations in agriculture censuses, and the measurement of food security and nutrition statistics.
The meeting went well, and AFSIS will discuss FAO, participating countries, and organizations' experiences, challenges, and innovations in developing and implementing food and agriculture statistical projects to strengthen food security information in the ASEAN region and develop capacity building in ASEAN member countries.
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The ASEAN Food Security Information System (AFSIS) Secretariat, in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) Japan, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Remote Sensing Technology Center of Japan (RESTEC), and Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA), conducted the 2nd Hands-on Training Courses for Agricultural Statisticians, the Final Workshop, and the 2nd Seminar for Executive Officials under the JAIF Project entitled “Improvement of Rice Paddy Area Statistics and Damage Assessment using Earth Observation Satellites for ASEAN” in Sriracha, Chonburi Province, and Bangkok, Thailand.
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On 23 April 2026, the AFSIS Secretariat participated in the Ad-Hoc Senior Officials Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (SOM-AMAF), held via a virtual platform, to discuss the implications of recent developments in the Middle East on regional food security and to identify coordinated measures to enhance ASEAN’s food resilience, in preparation for the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF) Meeting.
The agricultural sector plays a vital role in supporting food security and livelihoods across ASEAN, where diverse production capacities shape the availability of major agricultural commodities such as rice, maize, sugarcane, soybean, and cassava. This report examines the SSR patterns across ASEAN to emphasize regional strengths, structural imbalances, and the implications for food security and agricultural policy in the region.
The self-sufficiency ratio (SSR) is a key indicator of food security. It shows how well Southeast Asian countries can meet rice demand through domestic production, with the region overall remaining increasingly self-sufficient despite ongoing challenges.
