Myanmar - FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission, March 2016

An FAO/WFP Crop and Food Security Assessment Mission (CFSAM) visited Myanmar from 24 November to 10 December 2015 at the invitation of the Myanmar’s Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation (MoAI) to forecast the 2015 cereal production (2015 main monsoon and ongoing 2015 secondary summer season) and to evaluate the prospective food security and nutrition situation. The invitation was prompted by the extensive severe flooding caused by heavy rains and the passage of Cyclone Komen at the end of July 2015, which resulted in considerable damage to agricultural land, livestock, fishery/aquaculture and infrastructure. The Mission aimed specifically to assess the impact of the floods on the 2015 main-crop harvest, to ascertain whether there would be a food shortage in the 2015/16 marketing year (October/September) and, if so, to quantify it, and to identify the country’s nutritional and agricultural support needs until the next main harvest. The Mission included three international FAO staff, three international WFP staff and a number of national staff from both agencies. The Mission was accompanied for one week by an observer from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (EC/JRC).