India, ASEAN unveil five-year roadmap for farm and forestry cooperation

• The 9th ASEAN–India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry (AIMMAF) was held on  September 9 in New Delhi.

• The meeting was co-chaired by Philippines Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, representing the ASEAN chair, and Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

• The meeting placed strong emphasis on practical, farmer-centred cooperation and strengthening the ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in agriculture and forestry.

The new ASEAN-India Medium-Term Plan of Action for 2026-2030 will steer cooperation across four broad areas:

i) Policy dialogue and trade in resilient value chains.

ii) Institutional networking and digital innovation.

iii) Technology cooperation and joint research.

iv) Human resource development along with farmer exchanges.

• The meeting agreed that the 10th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry will be convened in 2028.

What is ASEAN?

• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was established on August 8, 1967 in Bangkok by five countries — Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.

• There are currently 11 member states: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam and Timor-Leste.

• The ASEAN Summit is the highest policy-making body in ASEAN comprising the heads of State or government of ASEAN member states. As per regular practice, the ASEAN Summit Meetings shall be held twice annually. The first ASEAN Summit was held in Bali, Indonesia on February 23-24, 1976.

• ASEAN is considered one of the most influential groupings in the region. India and several other countries, including the US, China, Japan and Australia, are its dialogue partners.

(The author is a trainer for Civil Services aspirants.)