Why in News?
The 9th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry (AIMMAF) was held on 9 September 2026 in New Delhi. India and ASEAN reaffirmed their commitment to food security, sustainable agriculture and resilient agricultural value chains.
Key Highlights
- The meeting was co-chaired by Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, and Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Philippines.
- ASEAN and India discussed the impact of climate change, extreme weather, geopolitical tensions and disruptions in food and agricultural supply chains.
- Cooperation will focus on climate-resilient agriculture, digital agriculture, AI, IoT, soil health and sustainable forestry.
- The meeting looked forward to adopting the ASEAN-India Medium-Term Plan of Action for Cooperation in Agriculture and Forestry 2026–2030.
- The new plan will focus on food security, trade and resilient value chains, digital innovation, technology cooperation, joint research, capacity building and farmer exchanges.
- India and ASEAN will promote low-emission rice, nutritious crops, bio-inputs, food safety, post-harvest management and reduction of food loss and waste.
- The meeting also highlighted the ASEAN-India Fellowship for Higher Education in Agriculture and Allied Sciences, providing 50 Master's fellowships over five years for students from ASEAN countries.
- The 10th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Forestry will be held in 2028.
About ASEAN
- Full Name: Association of Southeast Asian Nations
- Established: 8 August 1967
- Established at: Bangkok, Thailand
- Founding members: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
- Current members: 11, following the admission of Timor-Leste on 26 October 2025.
- Other members are Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam.
- ASEAN Secretariat: Jakarta, Indonesia.
- ASEAN provides a platform for cooperation in areas including economic integration, political-security cooperation and socio-cultural development.
