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On 6 July 2021, AFSIS Secretariat and Center for Agricultural Statistics (CAS), Department of Planning and Finance (DoPF), Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), Lao PDR had conducted the virtual Inception Workshop on Project for Supporting Agricultural Survey on Promoting Sustainable Agriculture (SAS-PSA) in Lao PDR.
The main purposes of this Inception Workshop are to inform the objective and the future work plan of the SAS-PSA project, discuss the on-going implementations of the SAS-PSA in Lao PDR, and to get suggestions from all the stakeholders in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Lao PDR.
The session was opened by the warm welcome speech of Ms. Vivanh Souvannamethy, Director of CAS, and followed by the notable opening remarks by Dr. Waraporn Saelee, AFSIS Manager.
During the meeting, the delegates were informed with the background of the SAS-PSA Project, along with the brief Methodogy of SDG Indicator 2.4.1. by Mr. NIIMI Tomohiro, the Japanese Expert.
Afterward, activities and work plan of the SAS-PSA Project in Lao PDR were presented by Mr. Sengphachan Khounthikoummane, National Consultant of CAS. The Meeting was informed that 1) The SAS-PSA Project in Lao PDR will be starting from 1 May 2021 to 31 March 2022 2) Household samples are 220 households from 10 districts in Khammuane province 3) The manual and questionnaires have now been updated in Lao language 4) The CAPI, the survey solution programme, will be used for interview farmers.
Lastly, Ms. Vivanh Souvannamethy, Director of CAS, DoPF, MAF of Lao PDR expressed the sincere gratitude to the AFSIS Secretariat and MAFF, Japan for the implementation of the SAS-PSA Project in Lao PDR as it is the fundamental step to improve agricultural statistics and support SDG indicator 2.4.1. in the region.
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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.
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On 19 March 2026, the AFSIS Secretariat participated in the Asia and the Pacific Food Systems Forum 2026 under the theme “Feeding the Future, Sustaining the Planet” in Manila, the Philippines, organized by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) . The forum aimed to promote food security policies, review ADB’s related initiatives, and support long-term food systems transformation.
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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.
