OCTOBER 16TH IS WORLD FOOD DAY, AND THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS HAS SET THE THEME FOR ITS GLOBAL ACTIVITIES IN 2020 AS "GROWING TOGETHER, PROSPERING TOGETHER, SUSTAINING TOGETHER, ACTION SHAPES THE FUTURE". THE 17TH IS INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF POVERTY, AND THE UNITED NATIONS HAS ANNOUNCED THIS YEAR'S THEME AS "TOGETHER FOR SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE FOR ALL".THE THEMES OF BOTH COMMEMORATIVE DAYS INCLUDE THE WORD 'ACTION', WHICH HAS BECOME A COMMON THEME FOR THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO FIGHT HUNGER AND POVERTY THIS YEAR. UNDER THE IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC, FOOD SECURITY AND POVERTY REDUCTION IN AFRICA HAVE BEEN SERIOUSLY THREATENED. AS A GOOD FRIEND AND PARTNER OF AFRICA AROUND THE CLOCK, CHINA IS TAKING PRACTICAL ACTIONS TO PROMOTE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN AFRICA, IMPROVE LOCAL FOOD SECURITY, AND ASSIST IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF POVERTY REDUCTION IN AFRICA.HELPING THE NEEDY SHOWS TRUE FEELINGSIN 2020, IN ADDITION TO THE COVID-19, MANY AFRICAN COUNTRIES ARE ALSO PLAGUED BY LOCUSTS, WHICH ARE GNAWING AT CROPS IN THE FIELDS AND HOPES OF AFRICAN PEOPLE TO IMPROVE THEIR LIVELIHOOD.IN JUNE THIS YEAR, THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT DONATED LOCUST CONTROL MATERIALS TO UGANDA AND OTHER COUNTRIES. IN ADDITION TO PESTICIDES AND SPRAY, THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT ALSO CAREFULLY PREPARED PROTECTIVE CLOTHING, MASKS AND GLOVES FOR AFRICAN BROTHERS.THE CHINESE AID, LIKE CHARCOAL IN THE SNOW, HAS EXCITED UGANDA'S MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE, ANIMAL HUSBANDRY AND FISHERIES, VINCENT BAMULANGAGI SEMPIJA, WHO SAID, "THESE SUPPLIES WILL GREATLY HELP THE FOOD SECURITY OF THE UGANDAN PEOPLEDUE TO EXTREME WEATHER CONDITIONS SUCH AS DROUGHT AND OTHER FACTORS, THE ENTIRE SOUTHERN AFRICAN REGION HAS EXPERIENCED SEVERE AGRICULTURAL FAILURES SINCE 2019, WITH THE YIELD OF STAPLE CORN ONLY 50% TO 60% OF NORMAL YEARS. LAST SEPTEMBER, THE UNITED NATIONS WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME SIGNED AN AGREEMENT WITH CHINA TO PROVIDE EMERGENCY FOOD AID TO THREE SOUTHERN AFRICAN COUNTRIES, ZIMBABWE, MOZAMBIQUE, AND NAMIBIA, TO HELP THESE COUNTRIES ADDRESS THEIR FOOD SHORTAGES.ZIMBABWE IS FACING ITS MOST SEVERE FOOD CRISIS IN OVER A DECADE. CHINA HAS PROVIDED FOOD AID TO NEARLY 250000 PEOPLE IN ZIMBABWE THROUGH THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME, WHICH CAN MEET THEIR DAILY FOOD NEEDS BEFORE THE NEXT RAINY SEASON. THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME HAS PRAISED CHINA, A PARTNER WHO KEEPS ITS WORD, ON SOCIAL MEDIA.IN RECENT YEARS, CHINA HAS ALSO STRENGTHENED COOPERATION WITH MULTILATERAL AND BILATERAL INSTITUTIONS, AS WELL AS THE PRIVATE SECTOR, TO JOINTLY PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. CHINA WILL ESTABLISH THE THIRD PHASE OF THE CHINA FAO SOUTH SOUTH COOPERATION TRUST FUND WITH A SCALE OF 50 MILLION US DOLLARS TO SUPPORT DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, INCLUDING AFRICAN COUNTRIES, IN IMPLEMENTING AGRICULTURAL AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.DEVOTE ONESELF TO TEACHING THE 'WEALTH MANAGEMENT MANUAL'HUNGER AND POVERTY ARE LONG-STANDING CHALLENGES THAT HAVE PLAGUED AFRICA'S DEVELOPMENT. ACCORDING TO UNITED NATIONS DATA, THERE ARE STILL 250 MILLION PEOPLE IN AFRICA WHO SUFFER FROM HUNGER. WHAT'S MORE, IN 2020, THE ECONOMIC RECESSION CAUSED BY THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC MAY INCREASE THE NUMBER OF HUNGRY PEOPLE IN AFRICA.FOR MANY YEARS, CHINA HAS DISPATCHED AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY EXPERT GROUPS TO AFRICAN COUNTRIES, ESTABLISHED AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATION CENTERS IN THE AREA, AND TAUGHT AFRICAN FARMERS AND AGRICULTURAL TECHNICIANS AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE, GUIDING THEM TO IMPROVE THEIR COMPREHENSIVE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION CAPACITY. CHINA HAS ALSO TRAINED A LARGE NUMBER OF AGRICULTURAL MANAGEMENT AND TECHNICAL PERSONNEL OFFICIALS FOR AFRICAN COUNTRIES, AND HELD AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY TRAINING COURSES LOCALLY.TAKING THE CHINA MOZAMBIQUE AGRICULTURAL TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATION CENTER AS AN EXAMPLE, CHINA HAS HELPED MOZAMBIQUE EXPERIMENT WITH MORE THAN 80 VARIETIES OF VARIOUS CROPS SUCH AS RICE, CORN, COTTON, SOYBEANS, AND SESAME, AND SELECTED EXCELLENT VARIETIES SUCH AS RICE "YUE NONG SI MIAO", CORN "SHANGRI LA", AND COTTON "E ZA MIAN 26" FROM THEM, TRAINING MORE THAN 3000 LOCAL FARMERS.THE "CENTRAL AFRICAN SAISAI AGRICULTURAL COOPERATION PROJECT (FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE WANBAO MOZAMBIQUE AGRICULTURAL PARK PROJECT)" LOCATED IN SAISAI, THE CAPITAL OF GAZA PROVINCE, MOZAMBIQUE, DRIVES SURROUNDING FARMERS TO DEVELOP LAND AND PLANT RICE THROUGH COOPERATIVE PLANTING METHODS.WANBAO PROVIDES US WITH AGRICULTURAL MACHINERY AND SEEDS, TEACHES US THE TECHNIQUES OF LEVELING THE LAND, CARING FOR CROPS, AND CONTROLLING PESTS. JOANNA MUYANGA, 55, IS A COOPERATIVE PLANTER OF THE SINO AFRICAN SAISAI AGRICULTURAL COOPERATION PROJECT. SHE JOINED THE COOPERATIVE PLANTING PROJECT IN 2015 AND IS DELIGHTED TO TALK ABOUT HER HARVEST.BEFORE JOINING THE COOPERATIVE PLANTING PROJECT, MY FAMILY PLANTED SOME BEANS AND CORN ON ONE HECTARE OF LAND, WHICH WAS ONLY ENOUGH FOR OUR OWN FOOD DESPITE BEING BUSY. NOW THAT I AM PARTICIPATING IN THE COOPERATIVE PLANTING PROJECT WITH CHINA, I HAVE EARNED MONEY AND CAN AFFORD MY GRANDSON'S EDUCATION. I CAN ALSO BUY BETTER FOOD AND CLOTHES FOR OUR FAMILY. WE HAVE ALSO PURCHASED A REFRIGERATOR AND GAS STOVE AT HOME. I NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT THESE THINGS BEFORECHRISTOPHER CARPENTBWA, AN EXPERT AT THE ZAMBIA AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE, SAID THAT MORE CHINESE INVESTORS ARE WELCOME TO INVEST IN AGRICULTURE, WHICH CAN NOT ONLY HELP AFRICAN COUNTRIES INCREASE CROP YIELDS AND PROMOTE INCOME GROWTH FOR SMALL FARMERS, BUT ALSO HELP INCREASE LOCAL INCOME.HARVEST NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEVELOPMENTLEARNING CHINESE TECHNOLOGY AND EXPERIENCE FROM AGRICULTURAL COOPERATION PROJECTS PROVIDED BY CHINA, AND SEEKING NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO CHANGE DESTINY AND ACHIEVE PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, ARE THE GOALS THAT MANY AFRICANS ARE CURRENTLY STRIVING FOR.EMMANUEL ASHIMANA, A 34 YEAR OLD RWANDAN, WAS ORIGINALLY A MECHANIC AT A SUGAR FACTORY AND HAS BEEN WORKING FOR CHINESE AGRICULTURAL EXPERTS IN RWANDA SINCE 2008. UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF CHINESE EXPERTS, HE MASTERED THE TECHNIQUE OF MUSHROOM AND GRASS CULTIVATION. DUE TO HIS OPTIMISM ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF MUSHROOM GRASS, ASHIMANA FOUNDED A MUSHROOM GRASS PRODUCTION COMPANY WITH HIS SAVINGS IN 2016.PATRICK KARANGUWA, DIRECTOR OF THE RWANDA AGRICULTURAL COMMISSION, SAID THAT RWANDA HAS A HIGH POPULATION DENSITY, AND EDIBLE AND MEDICINAL FUNGI ARE HIGH-VALUE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS THAT CAN ACHIEVE HIGH RETURNS WITHIN A LIMITED AREA. THEY HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN THE TRANSFORMATION OF AGRICULTURE IN RWANDA, AND CAN ALSO IMPROVE THE NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF THE POPULATION.AFTER 4 YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT, ASHIMANA'S COMPANY'S MUSHROOM BAG PRODUCTION CAPACITY HAS NOW REACHED 10000 BAGS PER MONTH, SELLING AT LEAST 600 KILOGRAMS OF EDIBLE MUSHROOMS PER MONTH. THE PRODUCTS ARE NOT ONLY POPULAR IN RWANDA, BUT ALSO EXPORTED TO NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES SUCH AS THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO AND UGANDA. ASHIMANA ALSO INTENDS TO CONTINUE EXPANDING THE COMPANY'S SCALE AND EXPLORE NEW DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES IN RWANDA AND SURROUNDING COUNTRIES.PROFESSOR TANG LIXIA FROM THE SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES AND DEVELOPMENT AT CHINA AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY SAID THAT THE CONTENT OF CHINA AFRICA AGRICULTURAL COOPERATION IS IN LINE WITH AFRICA'S OWN DEVELOPMENT PLANS SUCH AS THE AFRICAN UNION'S AGENDA 2063 AND THE COMPREHENSIVE AFRICA AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT PLAN. THE COOPERATION CONTENT IS CLOSE TO AFRICA'S ACTUAL NEEDS AND IN LINE WITH THE COMMON INTERESTS OF BOTH SIDES.KAVINS ADHILL, AN EXPERT ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS IN KENYA, SAID: "BY THE END OF 2020, CHINA WILL WIN THE BATTLE AGAINST POVERTY AND SOLVE THE PROBLEM OF ABSOLUTE POVERTY THAT HAS EXISTED FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS IN A HISTORIC WAY. DESPITE THE CHALLENGE OF THE GLOBAL COVID-19, CHINA'S ENVIABLE DREAM IS ABOUT TO COME TRUE. BY LEARNING FROM CHINA'S EXPERIENCE, MANY AFRICAN COUNTRIES HAVE INCREASED THEIR EFFORTS TO FIGHT POVERTY, AND THE RESULTS ARE ALSO REAL."