PM Somchai : Thailand able to help with fund for food-pressed nations
Written by changthai11 on Saturday, October 25th, 2008
PM Somchai: Thailand able to help with fund for food-pressed nations
BEIJING, Oct 25 (TNA) — Thai Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat said Saturday that his country is prepared to cooperate in establishing an emergency fund to assist countries with food shortages.
Mr. Somchai told country leaders attending a two-day Seventh Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) which concludes in the Chinese capital Saturday evening that he appreciated an idea raised by European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso in July this year to set up an emergency fund of one billion euros to help countries with insufficient food supplies, especially those with populations facing extreme hunger and starvation.
The Thai prime minister said he believed institutions under the European Union (EU) are locating funding sources and determining how to disburse the fund, especially aimed at benefitting African nations, if the plan materialises.
Thailand, as the world’s largest food producer and exporter, had offered agricultural export assistance to its neighbours and a number of African countries in past years due to its expertise in the field, he said.
Thailand is prepared to work with Europe in order to bring a better results.
Member countries of ASEM should also work together to help control global warming, conservation of energy and using more alternative energy, Mr. Somchai asserted, and Asia and Europe must cooperate more on facilitating trade, food safety, and promoting research and technology transfer in agriculture, he said during his speech entitled ‘Food Security’.
On Saturday the prime minister was to meet his Vietnamese counterpart before joining a working lunch with heads of delegations. He also planned to meet with the prime minister of Singapore in the afternoon.
The closing ceremony of 7th ASEM would be held late Saturday afternoon, and the prime minister and delegation will return to Bangkok afterward.
ASEM is a dialogue between the leaders of Asia and Europe to share and exchange their views on world issues.
It provides opportunities for the leaders of two continents to expand and strengthen their political, economic, social and culture cooperation and relations.
This session of ASEM, the seventh, has focused on the theme of “Vision and Action: Toward a Win-Win Solution”. Meanwhile the leaders also discussed the current situation and trends, especially world economy and financial situation and its regional impact. (TNA)
