Brunei Darussalam and FAO

Partnering for sustainable agricultural development and food and nutrition security
Brunei Darussalam became a member of FAO in 2013. This marked the beginning of a proactive partnership and
the countrys close involvement in FAOs regional knowledge network. Recent FAO regional assistance pertinent to
Brunei Darussalam has focused on a framework for food security and a vision for the food agriculture and forestry
sector. Objectives of current country-level cooperation include reducing and diversifying the origin of food imports and
developing rice production with a view to attaining self-sufficiency in this food commodity.

A small nation with a population of approximately 400000,

Brunei Darussalam currently imports 80percent of its food
supplies. It consequently accords high priority to reducing its
dependence on food imports and increasing domestic rice
production in particular.
Already in 2009, the Government had reviewed its policy
on domestic staple food production and a long-term rice
production programme was implemented with the aim of
achieving self-sufficiency. More recently, the Government
has indicated a willingness to engage with FAO in related
projects and training initiatives.

FAO is cooperating with Brunei Darussalam and other

members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) in the development of an Integrated Food Security
Framework and Strategic Plan of Action on Food Security for
the region.
In addition, FAO is providing important regional and countrylevel technical support in response to transboundary animal
disease threats. It also helps countries to improve their
nutrition and food safety approaches and to balance food
security needs with developments in the bioenergy sector.

Special mention for food security efforts

Brunei Darussalam has received a special mention from
FAO Director-General for having had a lower than 5 percent
proportion of undernourished people in the country in 1990
a level it has successfully maintained since then.

Khairunnisa Binti Yakub

FAO has offered technical support to review and promote

Brunei Darussalams rice production programme in order to
achieve the above objectives and enhance the populations
food and nutrition security.

REGIONAL SCOPE COUNTRY FOCUS

Integrated approach to food security

4/2015/2

Planning for a food-secure future

Kundhavi Kadiresan
Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for
Asia and the Pacific
FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific
39 Maliwan Mansion, Phra Athit Road, Bangkok 10200,
Thailand
Tel: +662 697-4000
E-mail:FAO-RAP@fao.org

2015 Admiralty Secondary School

Contacts

The strategic document was introduced during the 36th

Meeting of the ASEAN Ministers of Agriculture and
Forestry (AMAF) in September 2014, together with the
Zero Hunger Challenge initiative for Asia and the Pacific.
Together with the German Agency for International
Cooperation (GIZ), FAO provided technical support to
ASEAN countries in further development of their vision,
and goals for cooperation in food, agriculture and
forestry as a contribution to ASEANs overall goal of
strengthening economic integration.

Enhancing capacity for emergency

response
While considerable opportunities should be opened
up with the creation of the ASEAN Economic
Community (AEC), the resulting increase in trade and
economic integration may also facilitate the spread
of transboundary animal diseases and zoonoses. For
example, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), rabies and
avian influenza are a threat to Brunei Darussalam and
neighbouring countries.
As well as affecting internal and international trade,
these diseases are a threat to food security, nutrition
and livelihoods. Regional approaches to tackle
occurrences of the diseases before they escalate into
crises are paramount for ensuring efficient and costeffective control and prevention. FAO has therefore
been implementing a cooperative programme with
ASEAN to provide additional regional as well as countrylevel technical cooperation for response, control and
prevention of transboundary animal diseases and
emerging zoonoses.
Of particular note is the region-wide avian influenza
programme, coordinated by FAOs Emergency Centre
for Transboundary Animal Diseases (ECTAD). This has
become a cornerstone and model for subsequent
development of broader regional coordination and
collaboration in treating other highly pathogenic
emerging transboundary diseases.
Within FAOs Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific,
a dedicated ASEAN Regional Support Unit has been
established to serve as a hub for secondment of experts
and technicians from national animal health services.
This initiative is providing opportunities for learning
and knowledge transfer as seconded staff share their
experiences in specific aspects of animal disease control.

Brunei Darussalam is benefiting from a number of other

regional programmes that are sponsored or implemented
by FAO. Areas covered by such interventions include:
 Food safety policies, strategies,
legislation and governance
 Evidence-based policy making
through multicriteria decisionmaking
 Food standards and Codex
Alimentarius-related activities

Food security
and adequate
nutrition for all is
where sustainable
development starts.
Jos Graziano da Silva
FAO Director-General

 Preventative risk-based
approaches in primary
production and across the food chain (including good
agricultural and manufacturing practices, and food
hygiene in retail sector)
 Food safety emergencies, including inspection,
monitoring and surveillance

Hygiene and safety in the food retail sector is an important

issue in the region and in Brunei Darussalam, and a
guidance document covering street foods and organized
retail services has recently been published. Targeting
governments and retail food business operators, the
publication is expected to be useful for governments
engaged in developing their food control systems to
provide stronger regulation of this critical sector. It will also
help food business operators improve their understanding
of critical factors in the retail sector, enabling them to put
in place their own control mechanisms and ensure safe
and quality products for consumers.

Brunei Times

Still in the context of ASEAN, FAO developed a Vision

and Strategic Plan for ASEAN Cooperation in Food,
Agriculture and Forestry (2016-2025), which was
accepted by the ten member countries.

Ensuring food safety through regional

cooperation

ANTARA/Oky Lukmansyah

A vision for agriculture: towards 2025