Celebrating 100th anniversary of CPC | Hybrid rice technology helps Africa improve food security

Editor's Note: To celebrate the centenary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in this July, China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA) has selected 100 representative stories of the country's foreign aid to support the development of other developing nations over the past years. This episode tells the stories of a Zambian official who has used his technical learning in China to facilitate the planting of rice in his own country.

Jota Brett Ncolley poses for a photo at his workplace [Photo/cidca.gov.cn]

Jota Brett Ncolley, a senior official and agricultural expert from the Zambian Ministry of Agriculture, attended a training session on advanced hybrid rice technology in 2018 in China. 

The training session was organized by the Chinese government to assist other developing countries in the plantation of rice with higher output through its advanced hybrid rice technology.

During his stay in China, Ncolley received technical training on a wide range of topics, including genetic breeding and planting, the application of agricultural machinery and fertilizers in the production of rice, and hybrid rice breeding.

Ncolley has been committed to integrating his learning from China into agricultural production in Zambia since he came back.

Jota Brett Ncolley instructs local farmers about how to better plant their rice during an inspection tour. [Photo/cidca.gov.cn]

Apart from founding a training institute for farmers on neighboring lands, Ncolley has often shared with them advanced knowledge, practical skills and managerial experience in relation to the planting of rice and imparted to them vocational planting techniques developed by Yuan Longping, Chinese agronomist and the "father of Chinese hybrid rice," during his inspection tours. 

Moreover, to further increase the income of local farmers and build a strong guarantee for food security he has advocated the establishment of special diversion dams to raise the efficiency of irrigation, selected candidate farmlands for the planting of rice, and strengthened the management of fertilizers and insect prevention and control.