Asean raises need for ‘agrobiodiversity’

RAISING awareness on the importance of agricultural biodiversity or agrobiodiversity for sustainable development and food security was the basic concern at the recently held Regional Workshop on Agrobiodiversity at Maejo University (MJU) in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Gil Saguiguit Jr., head of the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), said there is a lack of clear and adequate articulation of agrobiodiversity in existing regional and national policy frameworks and programs for agriculture or biodiversity, despite its essential links to food systems and nutrition, and its importance to local livelihoods.