The 38th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific was held in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, from April 20 to 24. Zhang Zhili, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China, led a delegation to the session and delivered remarks.

Vice Minister Zhang noted that the Chinese government has always regarded safeguarding food security as a top priority of national governance. To ensure basic self-sufficiency in grain supply and the absolute security of staple foods, China has enacted the Food Security Law, clarified its national food security strategy, adhered to the strategy of increasing grain production through soil conservation and technological progress, and improved its capacity for food production, storage, distribution, and processing. In 2025, China achieved another bumper harvest, with grain output surpassing 700 million tons for two consecutive years. The production of pork, beef, mutton, and poultry exceeded 100 million tons, while supplies of eggs, dairy, fruit, vegetables, tea, and aquatic products remained abundant. National agri-product quality and safety monitoring showed an overall pass rate of 98%. 

Vice Minister Zhang advocated strengthening scientific and technological support to increase the resilience of agrifood systems; keeping trade channels open and unimpeded and strengthening economic and trade cooperation in agriculture; and enhancing regional cooperation to boost overall agricultural productivity, thereby jointly advancing regional and global food security. 

During the session, Vice Minister Zhang participated in the ministerial roundtable on “Fostering Innovation for Food Security.” He shared China’s practices and achievements in various areas including basic research, cutting-edge technological breakthroughs, industrial technology transformation, and international cooperation in science and technology. Vice Minister Zhang also held a bilateral meeting with Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Dr Haji Abdul Manaf bin Haji Metussin, Minister for Primary Resources and Tourism of Brunei. They exchanged views on promoting practical cooperation in agriculture between the two countries. In addition, Vice Minister Zhang invited countries participating in the session to attend the 2026 High-Level Forum on Poverty Reduction and Development, which will be held in Beijing in May. The invitation received positive responses. 

Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah, Crown Prince of Brunei, Qu Dongyu, FAO Director-General, and delegations from 32 member countries in Asia and the Pacific attended the session.