Asean+3 to revise E. Asian Emergency Rice Reserve rules

Asean+3 to revise E. Asian Emergency Rice Reserve rules

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations plus China, Japan and
South Korea, or Asean + 3, is set to revise some rules on the
East Asian Rice Emergency Reserve to provide countries in the
region easier access to the reserve during calamities, a senior
Philippine government official said on Monday.

A possible increase in the volume of the reserve, which
currently stands at 87,000 metric tons, is also up for discussion
by countries in the region, Gregorio Tan, administrator of the
National Food Authority, told Dow Jones in Manila.

Beginning on Tuesday, the Philippines will host a two-day
project committee meeting of the East Asian Emergency Rice
Reserve, or EAERR, Tan said.

"We will try to improve the mechanisms by which countries may
access the reserve," he said.

Among the possible revisions is the "repositioning" of the
reserve, the bulk of which is located in surplus countries, Tan
said.

The EAERR is a regional cooperation among ASEAN's 10 member
countries plus China, Japan and South Korea. Asean's members are
Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines,
Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.

In October 2002, Asean agriculture ministers approved an
expansion of the rice reserve, from 87,000 tons to 1.75 million
tons. However, the increase was never implemented, apparently
because it was difficult for countries in need of emergency rice
stocks to actually get hold of the volume, Tan added.

Established in 1979, the rice reserve was intended to ensure
food security and reduce poverty by providing food assistance in
disaster areas in the region.

Twenty-five senior government officials from the East Asian
region will take part in the two-day meeting. -- Dow Jones