While FAO is a global organization, it has over the years evidenced particular interest in the Asia-Pacific region as nearly two-thirds of the world's farmers reside in this region.

Along with the expansion of membership, the range of FAO activities in Asia-Pacific has also widened. The regional office assists Asia-Pacific countries with policy advice and technical expertise in agriculture, economic and social development, fishery, forestry and sustainable development to make the region food-secure for present and future generations.

Yangon - Funded through a generous donation from PriceWaterhouseCoopers Charitable Foundation, 353 farm families received buffalos to restock animals lost when cyclone Nargis struck the delta last June. This donation will help hard hit families recover their livelihoods and resume household food production, an FAO statement said today.

Each of the 353 families received a pair of buffalos. The project beneficiaries will use the draught animals to prepare their lands for planting, and neighbouring families will also get their lands cultivated by either hiring or borrowing the animals.

Today, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presented FAO awards to four Asian farmers from Afghanistan, China, Viet Nam and Thailand.

Somjit Praisimuang from Thailand was honoured as model farmer for organic horticulture.

Today, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presented FAO awards to four Asian farmers from Afghanistan, China, Viet Nam and Thailand.

Rong Wenxi from China was honoured as a model farmer for rural biogas development.

Despite the rapidly increasing energy consumption of China, if one travels to the countryside one will find rural areas where power is still in short supply. But if one travels to the right areas, one will also find people who are doing something about it.

Today, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presented FAO awards to four Asian farmers from Afghanistan, China, Viet Nam and Thailand.

Haji Aminullah from Afghanistan was honoured as a model cooperative farmer.

Today, Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn presented FAO awards to four Asian farmers from Afghanistan, China, Viet Nam and Thailand.

Mrs Nguyen Thi Thu from Viet Nam was honoured as model farmer in the field of integrated agriculture.

Nadi, Fiji – The deepening global financial turmoil and soaring energy and commodity prices have serious adverse effects on poorer households, women and children. Rapid action is needed to avert increased child malnutrition and increase the availability of affordable food on local markets, said the Chairperson of FAO’s South West Pacific Ministers for Agriculture today.

Apia - Pacific island countries will benefit from US$2.5 million emergency assistance from FAO for increased agricultural and livestock production, targeting small farmers and poor consumers in 14 Pacific islands.

Under this short-term assistance – part of the Initiative on Soaring Food Prices (ISFP) launched by FAO late last year - vulnerable households are empowered with necessary basic resources to improve farm production and increase the supply of food on local markets.

Phnom Penh (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries/Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation) – MAFF and FAO announced today that they are launching an emergency project to help impoverished farmers boost agricultural production immediately. The project – funded from FAO’s Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) – is part of the Organization’s Initiative on Soaring Food Prices (ISFP) launched by the FAO Director-General in December 2007 aimed at boosting local food supply to soften the blow of soaring food prices.

FAO seeks US$33.5 million to help small farmers and fishers restore livelihoods

Rome – With the clock ticking on Myanmar’s main planting season, agricultural support is urgently needed to restore food production in the country’s cyclone-hit rice bowl, FAO said today.

Yangon/Bangkok – The distribution in late-July of 600 buffaloes to farming households in Myanmar’s cyclone-affected delta has greatly assisted small-scale rice farmers to prepare their paddy fields in time for the planting season and will serve as an important asset for upcoming cultivations, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said today.

On 20 July, 300 households in Ayeyarwady and Yangon Divisions each received one pair of buffaloes as part of an FAO project funded by the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF).

"Making e-Agriculture Work through Public Private Partnership in Asia" a panel discussion.

At eIndia today, partners in the global e-Agriculture initiative came together to continue the discussion about the role of public private partnerships (PPP) in supporting e-agriculture. (Building on the March 2008 online forum on www.e-agriculture.org.)

"The Role of COPs and Networks in e-Agriculture" a panel discussion at eIndia.

Bangkok - The already severe food security situation in cyclone-hit Myanmar is further worsening due to food shortages and high food prices, FAO said today.

Out of 2.4 million affected people, hundreds of thousands in the remote areas of the Ayeyarwaddy Delta still do not have sufficient food to eat.

With regular access to food disrupted after cyclone Nargis hit the delta, sharply rising food prices in the other parts of the country are posing a risk to national food security.

Destruction of mangroves has exposed coastal communities to cyclone
Rome - Mangrove forests could have reduced damage resulting from the waves caused by cyclone Nargis in Myanmar, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today.

FAO/UNDP launches a year-long campaign against hunger in Asia Pacific

Bangkok – Hunger remains one of the biggest challenges facing Asia and the Pacific. Against the backdrop of soaring prices for food – in particular rice – a new hunger campaign aims to create a groundswell for policy and structural reforms together with action, FAO and UNDP said today.

Poor farming and fishing communities need urgent assistance. Bangkok - The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is mounting this week the first damage and needs assessment mission into Myanmar's fishing sector, believed to be hit worse by cyclone Nargis than during the 2004 tsunami.

The five most affected states are considered the country's food basket, producing surpluses of fish, rice and pork for other parts of Myanmar, and overall food security situation in Myanmar is threatened, FAO said today.

Capacity building is at the heart of FAO's mandate. The newly published FAO Capacity Building Portal contributes to achieving FAO's vision to strengthen the national capacities of its member states to achieve their goals in food security and agricultural development. The Portal highlights FAO's:

+ Learning Resources, both corporate and specialized collections.

+ Learning Services, searchable by keyword and topic and providing access to FAO's Fellowships/Funding Sources database.

+ Featured Sites highlighting specific initiatives in capacity building.

Bangkok - Since 2005, developing countries have overtaken the developed world as the main potato growers, benefiting from major scientific discoveries over the last decades which have greatly simplified the introduction of improved varieties and dramatically expanded the area under potato cultivation, the International Potato Center (CIP) said today in Bangkok.

Potatos are an overlooked opportunity for food security and income generation in Asia, the CIP statement added.

Hanoi - Forest conservation in Asia and the Pacific cannot succeed without the direct involvement of local people, a gathering of the region’s forest managers concluded today in Hanoi.

Throughout the region, there are millions of indigenous and rural people dependent on forests for their basic daily needs.

Hanoi - Trees grow for hundreds of years, but the forestry sector needs to change immediately if it is to deal effectively with the rapid changes occurring in modern society. Climate change, skyrocketing costs of food and fuel, persistent poverty and escalating demands for forest products are bringing unprecedented challenges to the forestry sector in Asia and the Pacific, according to leading forestry experts.