Minister Uggah To Lead Mission To ITRC Meeting On Dec 3 In Indonesia's Jakarta

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 (Bernama) -- Minister of Plantation Industries and Commodities Douglas Uggah Embas will be leading the Malaysian delegation to the International Tripartite Rubber Council (ITRC) Ministerial Committee Meeting and ITRC Ministers' Meeting with Ministers responsible for the rubber industry from Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Vietnam in Jakarta, Indonesia on Dec 3, 2015. These meetings will be preceded by the Preparatory Senior Officials Meeting on Nov 30-Dec 2 at the same venue, the ministry said in a statement here Sunday. Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia are members of ITRC, which was established on Dec 12, 2001 to promote cooperation among the major natural rubber (NR) producing countries and ensure stable NR prices. Currently, ITRC countries account for 67.5 per cent of global natural rubber (NR) production. The ministry said the ITRC Ministerial meeting in Jakarta is expected to focus on strengthening cooperation among ITRC countries in the implementation of the Supply Management Scheme (SMS), which is aimed at balancing supply and demand for NR in the longer term. The meeting will also discuss progress on the establishment of the Regional Rubber Market; cooperation to increase domestic consumption of NR and exchange of information on the development of new products; and other measures to strengthen NR prices, it said. The ITRC Ministers will also convene a meeting with Ministers responsible for the rubber industry from CLMV countries aimed at strengthening cooperation among NR producing countries in the region, the ministry said. ITRC and CLMV countries collectively account for 78 per cent of global NR production. --BERNAMA