CIDCA chairman attends 2022 International Forum on Hybrid Rice Assistance and Global Food Security

Jointly hosted by the China International Development Cooperation Agency (CIDCA), the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA), and the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration (NFSRA), the 2022 International Forum on Hybrid Rice Assistance and Global Food Security was held in Beijing on Nov 12, 2022. 

President Xi Jinping delivered written remarks to the forum, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi read President Xi's remarks and delivered a speech, and CIDCA Chairman Luo Zhaohui attended and addressed the forum. 

Luo said that given the ups and downs of the COVID-19 pandemic, intensifying regional conflicts, worsening climate and environment, and an increasing global population, the world is facing an increasingly severe situation in food security. The latest UN reports highlight that nearly 30 percent of the global population are in food insecurity and over 10 percent are on the edge of hunger. Against this backdrop, the international community places a higher expectation on hybrid rice technology, Luo noted. In 1973, Chinese researchers, represented by Yuan Longping, made breakthroughs in hybrid rice technology that multiplied rice yields. Thanks to their great feat, the Chinese people said farewell to hunger. 

A highlight of China's foreign aid and a carrier of friendship from the Chinese people, tiny hybrid rice seeds contribute to food supplies worldwide, across the Americas, Asia, Africa, Europe and the South Pacific region, he said. China has collaborated with over 140 countries and regions in agriculture by setting up agricultural demonstration centers, Luo said, China has also helped cultivate agricultural talents and provided a large amount of food aid. 

Following the trend of the times and the will of the people, President Xi put forward the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and made food security one of the eight major cooperation areas. This year, China proposed a cooperation initiative on global food security, which provides China's wisdom and solution as another effort to address the global food security issue. 

Luo extended appreciation to related Chinese governmental bodies as well as friendly countries and UN agencies, saying that it is the joint efforts of all related parties that make hybrid rice take root across the world and contribute to the implementation of the UN's 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and the realization of the Zero Hunger goal. 

MARA Vice-Minister Ma Youxiang, NFSRA Administrator Cong Liang, Executive Vice-Governor of Hunan Province Li Dianxun, as well as Ambassador of Uzbekistan to China Farhod Arziev and Ambassador of Mozambique to China Maria Gustava, delivered speeches respectively. 

Heads of state and minister-level officials from countries including Laos, Burundi, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Cuba, the Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Pakistan, the Maldives, and the Philippines, as well as UN officials, including UN Deputy Secretary General Amina J. Mohammed, sent congratulatory messages via video link. 

After the forum, Luo accompanied the guests to visit the photo exhibition of the forum.