FAO Representative meets with Prime Minister of Thailand

Senior FAO Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific meets with Prime Minister of Thailand

18/6/2015, Bangkok, Thailand – FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific, Hiroyuki Konuma, met today with H.E. General Prayuth Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of Thailand, to bid farewell prior to retirement in late July.

Konuma informed the Prime Minister that Thailand had won one of the most prestigious FAO international awards, the Edouard Saouma Award, for its recognition in containing the spread of the Cassava Pink Mealybug in the Greater Mekong Subregion. The Award to Thailand was announced earlier this month by FAO Director-General, José Graziano da Silva at the FAO Conference in Rome.

Konuma also informed the Prime Minister that the Asia-Pacific region had achieved the MDG hunger target (MDG-1c) prior to the 2015 deadline, for which Thailand contributed the highest level of reduction of chronic hunger, by 79 percent, since 1990.

However Konuma added that seven percent of Thailand’s population is still suffering from chronic hunger and who constitute the most vulnerable and disadvantaged groups in the society. He suggested to the Prime Minister that Thailand may wish to join the Zero Hunger Challenge initiative launched by the UN Secretary-General in 2012.

The topics of Thailand’s rice reserves and ‘illegal, unregulated and unreported’ fishing (IUU) were also discussed. FAO is providing technical support to the Royal Thai Government on the drafting of subsidiary regulations in support of the new Fishery Act.

Konuma thanked the Prime Minister and the people of Thailand for strong collaboration established between the Royal Thai Government and FAO, and for their friendship during his tenure of 15 years in Thailand. He assured FAO’s continued collaboration and partnership with the Royal Thai Government.

ENDS

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