AFA is a regional organisation with nine member organisations in Southeast and North Asia (Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan ROC, Thailand, Vietnam). The organisation is exploring to attract new members in countries such as Laos, East Timor, India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. A few of AFA’s individual member organisations, VNFU, SorKorPor, Pakisama implement projects in cooperation with Agriterra. This project will be a continuation of the advocacy and lobbying activities implemented in the just concluded AFA-Agriterra cooperation in project 4864. Through this project, AFA would like to address the need of AFA members to build their capacities to engage and benefit from opportunities from the mainstream and alternative markets. The clamor for services in this area have been strong, and AFA is challenged to respond to this demand from members. Like in the previous project, the activities covered under this project will mostly be undertaken at the national level, although synchronised, coordinated and standardised at the regional level. The advocacy and capacity building work of AFA will focus on advocacy for land and food security through sustainable agriculture , and equitable share in market opportunities.

In the next two years, AFA will become a key regional farmers' group articulating Asian small farmers' concerns and perspectives. Target institutions are (a) ASEAN on pro-small farmer regional integration processes; (b) WB on pro-small farmer empowerment processes; (c ) GATT-WTO-AoA on pro-small farmer global agricultural trade and ( d) IFAD on truly empowering farmers' forum processes. To enhance membership development and to build strong, capable, credible and far-reaching national farmers' organizations AFA wil organize leadership trainings and workshops and facilitate technology transfer between AFA members. The internal organisation will be strengthened by improving AFA's organizational systems and structures, enhance leadership and governance and strong coordination between and among members, secretariat and partners.

ASA, the Asian Farmers's Alliance for Sustainable Rural Development, was formally formed in February 2004 with the conduct of the first General Assembly. AFA as a regional alliance of farmers in Asia has established initial linkages with some key players in regional advocacy work such as the International Federation of Agricultural Producers (IFAP), ASEAN Foundation, Focus on the Global South, Third World Network (TWN), Southeast Asia Committee on Food Security and Fair Trade (SEACON), Asia ?Japan Partnership Network (AJPN). Many have seen the potential of AFA to be a strong farmers' voice in Asia. AFA members have built their knowledge on regional and international issues like the GATT-WTO-AoA and the Millennium Development Goals and the situation of farmers in Asia. AFA has initiated a sustainable rice campaign with the conduct of two rice fora which resulted in an August 2005 declaration on rice, conduct of two rice celebrations (in Depok, Indonesia and Chonburi, Thailand). It has convened a session on MDG and farmers, held during the Asian Civil Society Forum in November 2004. It has initiated country-level focus group discussions and dialogues with government WTO trade negotiators in Cambodia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. It has helped organize a regional level dialogue with government WTO agricultural trade negotiators from Cambodia, Philippines, South Korea and Thailand. AFA members have started to have bilateral cooperation, such as between VNFU and Laos. VNFU has entered cooperation with the Laos government and LCDA, a Laos NGO, to form a national farmers' organization in Laos. VNFU has also conducted a Farmers' Exchange Visit with KAFF and BFA, AFA member in South Korea.

The Asian Farmers´Alliance for Sustainable Rural Devt. (AFA) was formed in March 2001. The alliance is envisioned to be the farmers´vehicle to lobby, link up and play active role in rural devt in Asia. It is composed of five national peasant federations from Indonesia, Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam and the Philippines. Other farmer leaders from Cambodia, Malaysia, Japan,Taiwan, Nepal, Laos and Myanmar sit as observer and are working for their eventual membership to the AFA. The Project has four main components, namely (1) Peasant Agenda Building, Advocacy and Solidarity Formation- (2) Rural Leadership Development (3) Research, Advocacy and Communication (4) Appropriate Technology Exchanges This project will increase the capacity of AFA to actively and strategically participate in regional policy formulation and deliberation on crucial regional issues affecting the Asian peasant sector.