Sherab Lhamo

In a multilateral effort to reform agrifood systems across the Asia-Pacific region, Bhutan is leading a high-level delegation to participate in the Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific (APRC) in Colombo, Sri Lanka hosted by the government of Sri Lanka.

The conference is convened by the  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FAO. Technical support for the delegation will be provided by the FAO Representative in Bhutan.

“The APRC will discuss critical issues such as food and nutrition security, agri-food systems  transformation, and accelerating achievement of SDGs. Bhutan’s experience—LDC  graduation, carbon-negative status, and facilitating agri-food systems transformation through a  multi-disciplinary and holistic approach will be highly relevant to the conference,” said Ken  Shimizu, the FAO Nepal and Bhutan Representative.  

The conference will gather participants from 46 FAO member nations in Asia and Pacific and hundreds of high-level participants are registering for senior official’s meetings on January 31 to February 2 virtually, and a ministerial session from February 19 to 22 in-person.

A special ministerial event during the conference will focus on thematic areas such as championing modernisation and digitalisation for smallholders in aquaculture and livestock. This reflects a broader ambition to foster an overall transformation of agrifood systems across the vast Asia-Pacific region.

The country’s high-level participation in this important conference will help guide FAO’s work  here in Bhutan and right across the Asia and Pacific region, as all FAO member nations share  a common goal of achieving the SDGs by 2030, particularly those goals relating to hunger,  poverty and inequality, said Ken Shimizu. 

Bhutan’s key priority areas are implementing the FAO Technical Cooperation Programmes in the renewal natural resources sector in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock according to a FAO press release.