Technical Workshop on Distributional Effects of Disasters and Climate Change on Food Security in ASEAN

PUTRAJAYA, July 18 (Bernama) -- The Director General of MARDI, Datuk Dr Sharif Haron inaugurated two International Events held back to back in Putrajaya today. The first event is a one-day Technical Workshop on Distributional Effects of Disasters and Climate Change on Food Security in ASEAN, which was organized by MARDI and the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA) held yesterday and the second event is the Regional Training Workshop on Transfer of Agricultural Technology with Specific Focus on "Application of ICT for Resilient Agriculture” which was organized by MARDI and Centre for Alleviation of Poverty through Sustainable Agriculture (CAPSA-UNESCAP). The ceremony was also attended by Mr. Masakazu Ichimura, CAPSA-UNESCAP Director and Dr. Venkatachalam Anbumozhi, Senior Economist of ERIA.

These workshops were jointly organized by MARDI- Centre for Alleviation of Poverty through Sustainable Agriculture (CAPSA) and Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), and will be held from 17 to 20 July 2017 at the Marriot Hotel Putrajaya. The workshop brought together 53 local and international participants from the Asia region.

These workshops were jointly organized by MARDI- Centre for Alleviation of Poverty through Sustainable Agriculture (CAPSA) and Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), and will be held from 17 to 20 July 2017 at the Marriot Hotel Putrajaya. The workshop brought together 53 local and international participants from the Asia region.

Whilst the second workshop is more focused on technology transfer with its theme “Transferring Agricultural Technology by Implementation of ICT for Sustainable Agriculture”. The objective of this workshop is to address the challenges observed to effectively transfer agricultural technology innovations to its stakeholders. These challenges are happening across the agricultural sector in Asia and the Pacific.  

Both workshops are inter-related and aimed to first, understand the effects of climate change and disasters to the region and its food security and second finding ways to address these issues to increase the region’s resilience towards it.  The workshops among others will be discussing issues related to the best methods in maintain healthy agriculture ecosystems, strengthening capacity in today's climate change adaptations such as extreme weather, drought, flood and other disasters as well as improving the soil quality. There will be a lot of information sharing among the Asian countries that will be of great benefit.

A special focus is given on the potential and application of ICT in technology transfer that may influence and strengthen the decision making and policy formulation to address regional climate change issues.

The workshop should be a medium which will enable Malaysia as the host country to enhance cooperation and information sharing with other countries in the ASIAN region, in the effectiveness of agricultural technology transfer management.

It is hoped that the outcomes of the workshops will give some enlightment to all relevant parties as addressing major issues such as climate change and how transferred technologies and innovations can play a major role will require commitments from all sectors including the public and  private sectors and  involvements need to be at various levels such as provinces, countries, corporations, and farms.

Apart from the workshop, participants will visit the Melaka Halal Hub Sdn Bhd, the first halal industrial centre in Malaysia, to show the roles of its existence as a centre of halal logistic, research and development of halal products, packaging centre and halal label. Lastly visit to Center of Excelllent (COE) for herbs at the MARDI Linggi Melaka.  They will be explained on how the technology of essential oils is transferred to producer who involved in commercialization.

SOURCE : Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI)

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 --BERNAMA