Agriculture is the backbone of the Greater Mekong Subregion’s economies. With over 60% of the subregion’s 340 million inhabitants engaged in small-scale agriculture, it directly supports the livelihoods of nearly 200 million people.
The Working Group on Agriculture (WGA) has been working toward the implementation of priority projects under the Core Agriculture Support Program.
While agriculture is the cornerstone of many families’ livelihoods, it is also exacting a toll on the environment, contributing to forest and biodiversity loss, water pollution and shortages, soil degradation, and greenhouse gas emissions.
People and governments in the Greater Mekong Subregion are working to develop agricultural practices that simultaneously conserve land and water resources, while at the same time increasing the productivity and profitability of agriculture, particularly for small-scale farmers.
Countries are pooling resources and expertise to increase the competitiveness of their agricultural products and encourage investment in agribusiness, while at the same time conserving the environment and natural resources. This involves research and technology that emphasizes climate-friendly agricultural development, including participation by the private sector with a focus on food security. This work is being guided by the Core Agriculture Support Program Phase II (CASP II) 2011-2020, supported by the Government of Sweden (Sida), Nordic Development Fund, Water Financing Partnership Facility, and Asian Development Bank.
At the 2nd GMS Agriculture Ministers' Meeting in Siem Reap, Cambodia on 6-8 September 2017, the ministers endorsed a strategy to promote safe and environment-friendly agriculture products, and a plan to strengthen value chain integration, involving smallholder farmers, rural women, as well as small and medium-sized agro-enterprises.
Related
• Strategy for Promoting Safe and Environment-Friendly Agro-Based Value Chains and Siem Reap Action Plan, 2018-2022
• Core Agriculture Support Program Phase II (2011-2015)
• Core Agriculture Support Program Phase I (2006-2010)
• Working Group on Agriculture (WGA)
Send inquiries to GMS Secretariat.
This is the summary proceedings from the 3rd Joint Knowledge Event of the the Greater Mekong Subregion Working Groups on Agriculture and Environment held in Bangkok, Thailand on 24 June 2015.
Over 500 kilometers of roads in six provinces in Western Cambodia are being rebuilt and repaired under a flood damage emergency reconstruction project. The region is crucial to the country's agrarian-based economy.
A long stretch of road linking several provinces of Myanmar, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Thailand and Viet Nam is home to many impoverished farmers. But things are slowly changing. Thanks to an improved road system, farmers now have an opportunity to distribute their agricultural products over long distances, reaching large, rich markets across the region. Farmers are also adding value to agricultural
This is the summary of proceedings from the 11th Meeting of the Greater Mekong Subregion Working Group on Agriculture held on 26 March 2014 in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar.
NAY PYI TAW, MYANMAR (25 March 2014) – Member countries of the Greater Mekong Subregion face losing recent development gains unless they invest more to secure natural resource stocks, senior officials from the six countries heard at a meeting in Myanmar today.
This document summarizes the outcome of the Tenth Meeting of the Greater Mekong Subregion Working Group on Agriculture (WGA-10), held in Xiengkhouang, Lao People‟s Democratic Republic on 3 April 2013.
This document summarizes the outcome of the knowledge event, Facilitating Green Pro-Poor Value Chains in the Greater Mekong Subregion, held in Xiengkhouang, Lao People's Democratic Republic on 2 April 2013.
The is the summary of proceedings from the 9th Meeting of the Working Group on Agriculture of the Greater Mekong Subregion held in Nanning, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China on 4-6 July 2012.
MANILA, PHILIPPINES (7 November 2012) - The Asian Development Bank and Australian Agency for International Development will provide an $87.39 million package of loans and grants to help Lao People's Democratic Republic and Viet Nam pair infrastructure upgrades with community-based disaster risk management and enhanced regional forecasting to improve flood and drought preparedness in the Greater Mekong Subregion.
Trade facilitation of agri-food products can potentially reduce trade barriers, lower transaction costs, foster efficiency along the supply chains, and reduce poverty in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS).