Nadi, Fiji—AsiaDHRRA together with other Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) participated in the 34th session of the Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific convened in Nadi, Fiji on April 9-13 2018.
The event is a biennial gathering of some (46) FAO member countries from across the region. Though the APRC is a Technical and Ministerial Meeting, CSOs are invited as observers, to make interventions during the conference which is why a preliminary consultation was concluded on April 5-7, 2018. It concentrated on positions among the CSOs, in anticipation of their contributions to discussions at the APRC, with the following agenda: SOFA, Climate Action for Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition in Pacific Small Island Developing States, and Food Safety Challenges.
More than 30 participants from some 24 organizations attended the CSO consultation meeting co-organized by Adhoc Committee (AHC) along with IPC and PIFON, while AsiaDHRRA convened the AHC process.
During the session proper, CSOs took the opportunity to directly lobby with targeted member governments thru senior officers and head of delegations by sharing their knowledge and recommendations based on experiences on ground, and research and science. APRC on the other hand, taught the participants to unite amidst diversity, for the greater good.
Subsequently, with open dialogues alongside FAO Director General, the ADG, and the CFS chair, in order to achieve the goals of APRC, concrete follow up actions at national levels were identified and agreed upon. Furthermore, support from FAORAP was promised by the ADG.
For AsiaDHRRA, the Secretary General – Ms. Marlene Ramirez managed collaborations with Indonesia, Laos, Philippines, and Vietnam, and made interactions for dynamic partnerships with other CSOs.