Statement of H.E. Mr. Farhod Arziev Ambassador of the Republic of Uzbekistan to the People’s Republic of China At The International Forum on Hybrid Rice Assistance and Global Food Security

Statement of H.E. Mr. Farhod Arziev

Ambassador of the Republic of Uzbekistan

 to the People's Republic of China

At The International Forum on Hybrid Rice Assistance and Global Food Security

Your Excellency Minister Wang Yi!

Your Excellency Mr. Luo Zhaohui!

Excellencies, Dear Ambassadors!

Ladies and Gentlemen!

First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the China International Development Cooperation Agency and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs for the invitation to participate in the International Forum on Hybrid Rice Assistance and Global Food Security.

The participation of such high level representatives at this event indicates that this International Forum will certainly become a significant, authoritative platform for professional discussions on a wide range of issues related to ensuring global food security.

Taking this opportunity, it gives me great pleasure to cordially congratulate on successful holding of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, which outlined the goals and tasks for completing socialist modernization and turning China into a rich, democratic, socialist state.

Having entered a new era, over the past ten years, China, under the wise leadership of President Xi Jinping, has achieved significant heights in ensuring the socio-economic development of the country, improving the welfare of the people, ensuring food security and strengthening international authority. The victory over absolute poverty and the completion of the comprehensive construction of "average prosperity society" in China are especially commendable.

Over the past 40 years, the number of people in China living below the poverty line has decreased by more than 800 million people, or 70 percent of the global figure. This is a truly historic event on a global scale.

Ladies and Gentlemen!

The Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan attaches great importance to the issue of food security. A number of resolutions and decrees of the President of Uzbekistan have been adopted in this direction. 

In particular, presidential decree adopted in January 2018 outlined the main goals and objectives for addressing food security and included further ensuring Uzbekistan’s food security, providing market with high-quality, safe and affordable food products.

In February 2021, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decree on the cultivation of raw rice, which allows growth of rice in 22 districts of the country on 17.5 thousand hectares.

In the area of food security, the relevant ministries and agencies of Uzbekistan and China established close cooperation, in particular, rice cultivation

Taking this opportunity, I would like to express sincere gratitude to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural affairs of the People's Republic of China for their kind assistance in finding specialists in the cultivation of hybrid rice in Uzbekistan by the technologies of the "father of hybrid rice" Yuan Longping.

Dear participants,

During the historical SCO Summit in Samarkand, President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev paid special attention to the problems of food security and called for the development of General Principles and Approaches to ensuring food security, which will strengthen multilateral cooperation in framework of SCO.

He stressed that this document should include specific measures to bring the regulatory framework closer, conduct joint research and introduce innovations.

President of Uzbekistan also proposed to hold an international conference on food security in 2023, which was supported by international community, including Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 

Dear participants,

I am confident that today's forum will greatly contribute to the development of new concepts, mechanisms and models of bilateral and multilateral cooperation on food security and provide the basis for identification of effective policies that lead to the goal of sustainable development. 

Thank you.