FAO Regional Representative Urges Partnerships to Support Smallholder Farmers
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The FAO Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific, Alue Dohong, has urged FAO member countries to strengthen partnerships with financial institutions, civil society, and the private sector to direct investments towards smallholder farmers and those most in need of support.
According to a press release from FAO Indonesia in Jakarta on Monday, the meeting of senior officials for the 38th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific (APRC38) was opened on Monday in Brunei Darussalam.
In opening the meeting, Alue Dohong, who serves as Assistant Director-General and FAO Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific, stated that regional cooperation is necessary to address various challenges of food insecurity and the impacts of geopolitical tensions.
“This conference is an opportunity to align and coordinate long-term policy and investment responses that will determine whether we can end hunger and improve living standards in Asia and the Pacific,” he said.
Dohong stated that the region is at a crucial juncture, with interconnected crises from geopolitics to climate, which demand swift actions to transform agrifood systems to be more efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable.
He also encouraged all member countries to use the conference to strengthen South-South and Triangular Cooperation (KSST).
In addition, Dohong urged member countries to deepen strategic partnerships with international financial institutions, civil society, and the private sector, with a focus on directing investments to smallholder farmers and family farmers most in need of support.
The Senior Officials’ Meeting will discuss substantive agendas including improving access to nutritious and affordable food and accelerating low-carbon and sustainable agricultural production.
They will also address enhancing efficiency and inclusion across agrifood systems; facilitating trade and market integration, particularly for countries no longer classified as least developed; and mobilising domestic and international funding and investment.
The Senior Officials’ Meeting of the 38th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific (38th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific/APRC38) is being held in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, from 20 to 24 April 2026.
Over the next three days, senior government officials from across the region will discuss emerging challenges and issues and establish a set of technical and policy foundations ahead of the Ministerial Session at the end of the week.
According to FAO, Asia and the Pacific account for 42 per cent or about 285 million people of the world’s undernourished population, although some countries have recorded declines in hunger rates.
The region also faces a triple burden of malnutrition: undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and rising obesity rates.