Workshop on Agro-food Trade and Food Security held in Beijing
DATE:2015-10-22 SOURCE:Agricultural Trade Promotion Center, MOA
The Workshop on Agro-food Trade and Food Security was held in Beijing on Oct. 19, 2015. It was co-organized by the Agricultural Trade Promotion Center (ATPC) of MOA, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD).
The Workshop brought together Chinese policy makers, domestic and overseas agricultural trade experts, representatives from international organizations and agri-business to discuss policy options to enhance the positive implications and minimize the potential negative ones of agricultural trade on food security.
The Workshop focused on the following four topics: (1) key challenges for food security; (2) potential impacts of trade on food security; (3) sustainable productivity growth as a mechanism to improve food security; and (4) policy implications in this context for China and other countries.
Mr. Zhao Weining, Deputy Director-General of the Department of International Cooperation of MOA, and representatives from OECD and ICTSD addressed the opening session. To ensure China's food security, the Workshop gave special attention to questions such as how to maintain agricultural import within a proper range, how to sharpen agricultural competitiveness, how to view China's domestic support policies and policy adjustment and how to establish an open policy system.
During the panel discussions, presentations were made by panelists from the Development Research Center of the State Council, MOA, OECD, ICTSD, FAO and renowned universities, followed by open discussions.
More than 100 participants attended the Workshop, representing government agencies, research institutes, universities, international organizations, foreign embassies, agricultural companies and industry associations.