Greater Mekong Subregion Core Environment Program: 10 Years of Cooperation
This publication highlights how the Greater Mekong Subregion Core Environment Program has contributed to sustainable development over the last decade.
Agriculture
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.
Agriculture is the cornerstone of many families’ livelihoods, however 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 (GMS) 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.
The GMS Economic Cooperation Program Strategic Framework 2030 (GMS-2030), endorsed and adopted at the 7th GMS Summit of Leaders in September 2021 to provide a new setting for the development of this subregion for the next decade, notes that in the agriculture sector, GMS-2030 will promote higher food safety and quality standards for expanding exports, for which an alignment of policies and standards will be required in the subregion. GMS-2030 will encourage climate- and environment-friendly production practices along the value chain, as well as sustain natural assets with a focus on small-scale farmers and micro, small, and medium-sized agro-enterprises. Given that COVID-19 has adversely impacted agricultural supply chains, GMS-2030 will support food security response and recovery efforts in the medium and long terms.
The GMS Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security Program (GMS SAFSP), implemented in 2019,has been designed to assist the GMS countries to tackle key climate change challenges to their agricultural sectors.Its three themes are: (i) climate-friendly, inclusive, and gender responsive agri-food value chains and agribusiness; (ii) climate-adaptive agriculture in the context of water-energy food nexus; and (iii) harmonized crop and livestock safety and quality systems.
The SAFSP was prepared in response to the recommendations of GMS agriculture ministers in 2017. They expressed a joint vision of promoting the GMS as a leading supplier of safe, quality and climate-friendly agri-food products. Achieving this vision depends on overcoming multiple barriers along the agrifood value chains. The ministers endorsed the Strategy for Promoting Safe and Environment Friendly Agro-Based Value Chains in the GMS at the 2nd GMS Agriculture Ministers' Meeting in Siem Reap, Cambodia on 6-8 September 2017. The Strategy aims 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.
The GMS SAFSP builds on the achievements of the GMS Core Agriculture Support Program (CASP) phase I (2006-2012) and phase II (2011-2020).
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)
• GMS Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security Program Newsletter
• Working Group on Agriculture (WGA)
Contact Persons
Focal Persons at the Asian Development Bank
- Srinivasan Ancha
Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Division,
Southeast Asia Department - Jan Hinrichs
Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Division,
East Asia Department - Criselda Rufino
Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Division,
East Asia Department
Other Concerned Staff & Consultants
- Asadullah Sumbal
Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination Division,
Southeast Asia Department - Rafaelita Jamon
Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination Division,
Southeast Asia Department/GMS Secretariat
Send inquiries to GMS CCESP Secretariat and GMS Secretariat.
Jars of coffee for sale in Ha Noi. Viet Nam has registered geographical indications for coffee and tea products, such as Buon Ma Thuot coffee, which is produced in the Central Highlands. Photo: brians101/iStock.com.
Made in the GMS: How GI Certification Can Boost Food Exports
In the Greater Mekong Subregion, countries have started to adopt laws and policies on geographical indications to protect locally sourced products that are made using traditional methods in their region of origin.
Countries in the Greater Mekong Subregion are taking a regional approach to food policy to protect the interests of consumers and suppliers in both domestic and export markets. Photo: ADB.
Establishing a Sustainable Food Supply for the Greater Mekong Subregion
A regional approach to food policy driven by business and public interests can better protect consumers and suppliers in both domestic and export markets, support scaling up of production, and facilitate market access and Greater Mekong Subregion product branding and marketing.
Lao PDR Deputy Minister of Finance Ms. Thipphakone Chanthavongsa (right) and ADB Country Director for Lao PDR Mr. Yasushi Negishi (left) after signing the grant agreement on 6 September 2018 in Vientiane. Senior officials from line ministries witnessed the signing.
ADB, Lao PDR Sign Agreement to Promote Sustainable, Climate-Smart Agribusiness
VIENTIANE, LAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC (7 September 2018) — The Asian Development Bank and the Government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic signed an agreement for a $40.5 million grant for the Climate-Friendly Agribusiness Value Chains Sector Project that will help farmers and agribusinesses develop sustainable and climate-smart agriculture value chains in the country.
Farmers dry cassava on an open field. The Climate-Friendly Agribusiness Value Chains Sector Project will improve the productivity, efficiency, and climate-resilience of agriculture value chains of farmers along the Greater Mekong Subregion economic corridors. Photo: ADB.
Investing in Climate-Smart Agriculture Value Chains in the Greater Mekong Subregion
The Climate-Friendly Agribusiness Value Chains Sector Project is helping transform transport corridors in the Greater Mekong Subregion into economic corridors by developing upstream and downstream linkages in agribusiness supply chains in a climate-friendly manner.
High-Value Crop Boosts Farmers' Income in Lao PDR
New value crops like Japanese cucumbers are helping farmers in the Lao People's Democratic Republic maximize their land and generate additional income.
New Rice Variety Helps Lift Thai Farmers out of Poverty
A new variety of rice is now helping smallholder farmers in North Thailand out of poverty, while also improving their diet. Siam Organic Co., Ltd., which introduced Jasberry rice, a non-GMO, organic rice variety in the region, adopted an inclusive business model to help farmers increase harvest yields and earn more.
The food traceability systems in the pilot project use barcodes to track information at the source (e.g., date of harvest/production) and until point of sale. Photo: ADB.
Using Barcodes to Track Food Safety from Farm to Table in the Mekong Region
A pilot project is introducing the use of barcodes to track the quality and safety of food in the Greater Mekong Subregion from “farm to shelf, then table.”
15th Meeting of the GMS Working Group on Agriculture (WGA-15)
The Greater Mekong Subregion Working Group on Agriculture held its 15th meeting on 29–30 May 2018 in Pu’er, Yunnan Province in the People’s Republic of China.
ADB Grant Promotes Sustainable, Climate-Smart Agribusiness in Lao PDR
VIENTIANE, LAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC (31 July 2018) — The Asian Development Bank’s Board of Directors has approved a $40.5 million grant to help farmers and agribusinesses develop sustainable and climate-smart agriculture value chains in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.
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The GMS Program mission is to focus on its fundamental strengths of community, connectivity, and competitiveness, while embracing the core principles of environmental sustainability and resilience, internal and external integration, and inclusivity, for building a GMS community with a bright shared future.
Greater Mekong Subregion Secretariat
Regional Cooperation and Operations Coordination Division,
Southeast Asia Department, Asian Development Bank
Address: 6 ADB Avenue, Mandaluyong City 1550, Metro Manila, Philippines
Telephone: +63 2 8632 4444 Fax: +63 2 8636 2226
