The Philippines, through Agriculture Secretary Francis Tiu-Laurel, has formally assumed the chairmanship of the ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF) 2026, being the host of the said forum held in Pasay City this year.

“We are privileged to host this gathering of leaders and partners committed to strengthening our region’s food, agriculture, and forestry sectors. Your presence underscores our shared dedication to cooperation, innovation, and addressing the urgent challenges that shape our bodies and impact our lives,” said Tiu-Laurel in his acceptance speech on Wednesday at the said event, which kicked off on 29 September up to 3 October.

It was in September 2015 when the Philippines, one of the five founding members of ASEAN, last hosted the AMAF in Makati City.

Opportunity to deepen further collaboration

Tiu-Laurel maintained that the AMAF is an opportunity to deepen further collaboration, foster sustainability, and reaffirm ASEAN’s shared mission of a resilient, prosperous, and inclusive regional bloc.

During the chairmanship of Malaysia for AMAF 2025, ASEAN leaders adopted the ASEAN Economic Community Strategic Plan 2026-2030, aiming to make ASEAN a single market and production phase, through innovation, digitization, and sustainability and envision ASEAN becoming the world’s fourth-largest economy that is resilient, competitive and future-ready.

The DA presided over several major sessions, including the 47th AMAF Meeting, the 25th AMAF Plus Three Meeting (with China, Japan and South Korea), and the 2nd ASEAN-Japan Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry Meeting (AJMAF).

“Looking ahead, the Philippines’ ASEAN Chairmanship in 2026 will be focused in championing the ASEAN implementation plan for the regenerative and resilient agricultural sector as a priority economic deliverable, which aligns with global climate and biodiversity targets,” according to Tiu-Laurel.

More exemptions on US tariffs

In an ambush interview, Tiu Laurel revealed that potential exemptions might be enjoyed by the ASEAN bloc regarding the recently imposed tariffs by the United States, following the US-ASEAN Business Council Meeting last Tuesday.

“The US delegation mentioned that there might be certain exemptions on the imposed tariffs, and that’s part of what we’ll look for during this meeting. The tariff that has been imposed on us and the ASEAN members is almost equal. But of course, we’re here to hopefully find ways to negotiate with America,” he explained.

The Philippines was earlier slapped with a 19 percent tariff on all US-bound exports.

Apart from coconut products, Philippine agricultural products that are exempted from the 19 percent tariff imposition include varieties of nuts, flour, coffee, cocoa, spices, and fruits such as bananas, pineapples, avocados, guavas and papayas, among others.

Highest decision-making body

Known as the region’s highest decision-making body on agriculture and forestry, AMAF convenes annually with the participation of agriculture ministers and senior officials from all 10 ASEAN member-states — Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Ministers from China, Japan, and South Korea also graced the AMAF and took part in the Plus Three sessions.