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Over 100 000 people so far have signed on to an international campaign to shine light on the scourge of chronic hunger / Beijing/Bangkok – Award-winning Chinese actress and FAO Goodwill Ambassador Gong Li is mad as hell, even though her new film Shanghai, co-starring John Cusak, promises to be a summer blockbuster.The star of acclaimed movie hits such as Raise the Red Lantern and Farewell My Concubine is taking...

Thimphu - While the area of forests in the Asia-Pacific region increases, levels of biodiversity are falling as large areas of primary forests continue to be lost according to FAO’s latest assessments.Forest cover in the Asia-Pacific region has risen by 14 million hectares since 2000. China, in particular, has shown remarkable progress, increasing its forest area by almost 30 million hectares in the past decade. Viet Nam, India and the...

Barguna - With support from FAO, a rural radio station for and by remote villagers will run alongside comprehensive rehabilitation support donated by the World Bank and the European Union for farmers and fishers regularly stalked by storms."People in the south need more support to rebuild their livelihood after the devastation caused by cyclones Sidr and Aila. Support in crop, fisheries and livestock sectors will be supplemented by broadcasting vital...

Participants from 12 Asian countries have agreed to move forward on concrete measures to reduce barriers to trade of organic products between them and win a growing share of global trade. The agreement was reached at a workshop held in Shanghai from 29 to 31 May under the auspices of the Global Organic Market Access (GOMA) project run jointly by FAO, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) and...

Bangkok – Asia needs to wake up to the enormous challenge to feeding its population of 5 billion people by 2050. Gross annual investments of US$209 billion are required for primary agriculture and downstream services in the developing countries of the world for future food security.Following the multiple crises of fuel, food and finance over the last 4 years, domestic food prices have increased dramatically and are at present still...

Phnom Penh – Under the FAO European Union Food Facility Project, the Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) HE Chan Sarun, yesterday distributed quality rice seed and fertilizer to 1 395 poor farm households in Chikreang Commune, Siem Reap province.Across Cambodia, rice seed and fertilizer are distributed to poorer rural families in 50 communes and 280 villages in nine provinces, in order to assist these families increase their...

Kuala Lumpur/Bangkok – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and FAO today launched a campaign to raise awareness about the increasing problem of world hunger affecting over 1 billion people globally, of which 642 million live in the Asia-Pacific region. The cooperation agreement was signed today in Kuala Lumpur by AFC President Mohamed Bin Hammam and FAO’s Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific Region, Hiroyuki Konuma.The signing...

World rice prices dropped during 2010Bangkok - FAO’s estimate of global rice paddy production in 2009 now stands at 680 million tones, 1 percent below the 2008 outstanding harvest, with much of the reduction being on account of Asia, where crops were impaired by erratic monsoon rains and the resurgence of El Niño conditions. Sluggish world import demand negatively affected all the rice market segments and resulted in sharp declines...

The speed of change in the livestock sector, in particular in Asia, has often resulted in systemic failures as apparent in social exclusion, widespread environmental damage, and threats to human health, FAO said today during the Asia-Pacific launch of the 2009 report The State of Food and Agriculture – Livestock in the balance.The global livestock sector has changed at an unprecedented pace over the past few decades. The booming demand...

Spanish oceanographic boats to undertake studiesPhuket – During a two day meeting, six Asian countries mapped out detailed plans to address severe poverty of artisanal and small scale fishers and halt ecosystem degradation, emphasizing the need for participatory and sustainable approaches.Coastal communities make important but often poorly recognized contributions to the food security and development of many millions of people. Funded by Spain, a four year regional programme for fisheries...