The Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH is a German International Cooperation Enterprise for Sustainable Development with worldwide operations.
Most of Southeast Asia’s economies are strongly dependent on the agricultural sector, with a considerable potential regarding trade in agricultural products. Opportunities for poverty alleviation and rural development through diversified trade exist for a wide range of product groups, such as fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, rice, palm oil, spices, fish and seafood. These opportunities have to be realized in increasingly competitive markets with strong requirements in terms of safety and quality. While compliance with food safety regulations of importing countries has long been a general prerequisite for market access, producers and traders also need to adjust to changing consumer perceptions and higher demands for quality standards from both, leading supermarket chains and a growing middle class with bigger purchasing power. Participation in higher-priced market segments calls for voluntary, private standards to complement legal requirements set by governments and duly account for quality throughout the production process, including aspects of climate change, fair trade and social factors. Against this backdrop, innovative concepts for risk-based and self-assessments of the industry, are gaining in importance.
Within the framework of ASEAN-German Cooperation in the focal area of “Regional Economic Integration” (REI), a new project is currently being prepared titled “Standards in the Southeast Asian Food Trade”. As a precondition for the implementation start, the related proposal and legal documents are set to have passed the ASEAN internal appraisal process and expected to receive endorsement from the Committee of Representatives of ASEAN soon. The project will be carried out by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, with funding in the amount of 2.5 million EUR for 3 years.
