China extends helping hands abroad

[Martian]

Yuan Longping, "The Father of Hybrid Rice"

"Super rice yield 3 times higher than the normal rice"

China extends helping hands abroad

"China extends helping hands abroad
English.news.cn 2010-07-30 08:33:21

Huang Dahui (in white shirt), a hybrid rice scientist, is seen with his students at the Booker Washington Institute in Liberia in October 2005. Huang was chief of the Chinese agriculture assistance team to Liberia, teaching locals how to grow hybrid rice. (Photo: China Daily)

BEIJING, July 30 (Xinhuanet) -- China has provided aid to more than 160 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and in the South Pacific since 1950.

The nearly 2,000 aid projects include agriculture, construction, transport, medical care and education, according to figures from the Ministry of Commerce.

In addition to the money and materials that have been sent to these countries and regions, China has also provided foreign aid experts, among them a doctor, a rice expert and an engineer. [I omitted the doctor and engineer profiles from this long article.]

Rice to feed the world

Huang Dahui's tan and the scars on his hands are the result of years of work in fields all around the world.

The 45-year-old professor is the chief training officer with the China-aid Hybrid Rice Technology Training Center, based in Changsha, capital of Hunan province.

Hybrid rice is produced by crossbreeding different varieties of rice and much of the research was originally done in the 1970s by the man known as the "Father of Hybrid Rice" Yuan Longping.

His work in China helped significantly increase rice output and allowed 20 percent of the world's population to feed itself with just 7 percent of the world's farmland.

Huang, a former student of Yuan, has helped people in eight countries breed China's hybrid rice since 1996.

"Our goal is to eliminate hunger on Earth," Huang said in his simple office before giving a lecture to students from Asia, Africa and Latin America.

"Students don't need to pay anything and get a daily subsidy for meals and lodging. Lessons are offered in English, French and Portuguese," Huang said.

Teaching is all very well, but fieldwork, literally, is most important, said Huang, who taught hybrid rice seed selection in the United States from 1996 to 1999. Since then he has worked in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Thailand, Liberia, Uzbekistan and India.

"Over the past 15 years a quarter of that time has been spent in foreign lands," Huang said.

More than 120 countries currently grow rice, and about 50 of them have introduced Chinese hybrid rice, Huang said.

"If rice-growing countries planted 50 percent more hybrid rice, food would not be scarce," he said.

Converting these countries to his cause is not an easy task, however, and working in mainly tropical countries means he has had to contend with high temperatures, up to 47 C in India.

Another difficulty is staying healthy. During Huang's stay in Sri Lanka there was dengue fever and he was the only one to stay and complete the training plan.

Long working hours and irregular meals are another facet of his work.

"In Indonesia, we had to wake up at around 6 am and have breakfast at 7. The next meal would be at 4 pm. We were often hungry," he said.

Huang's reward is when his international students pay their respects. He is also grateful that his wife has been supportive. He said his first marriage failed because he was away from home so often.

'I'm glad that I have been involved in foreign aid. It's a meaningful job with a great sense of achievement and I would do it again given the chance.'"

 

[Martian]

China technology to boost Africa's food production

Daily Nation: - News |China technology to boost Africa's food production

"China technology to boost Africa's food production
By VPPS
Posted Thursday, August 12 2010 at 11:45
BEIJING, Thursday

Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka. Photo/FILE

China has agreed to transfer her agricultural technology to Africa to enable the continent boost production and thereby guarantee world food.

The Beijing declaration for the massive agricultural technology transfer came as the China-Africa Agricultural Forum, in which Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka represented Kenya, drew to a close today.

The declaration called for a leap in Africa's agricultural output by transforming its rural agriculture through infusion of Chinese agricultural characteristics.

This will involve rural farmer education, setting up of modern farming demonstration centres, use of better quality seeds, and new technology in appropriate farming machinery as well as soil improvement techniques.

Kenya's Vice President said the 21st century belonged to Africa and he was confident that the continent will transform her economies to the extent of helping feed the rest of the world.

Reading the declaration, the China's deputy Prime Minister Mr Hui Liangyu said global food security should be the Number One priority of world governments, given that acute food shortages were bound to lead to food crisis hence social and political instability.

"China is the largest developing economy able to feed 20 per cent of the world's population on proceeds of 9 per cent of the planets arable land. If we partner with Africa with a much higher percentage of arable land yet contains most of the developing countries we should be able to guarantee international food security," he said.

He added that whereas China has the technological advantage, Africa was blessed with arable land and a better climate.

Later, Mr Musyoka met with leaders of major Chinese firms doing business in the African continent. In his meeting with the Chairman of the board of Sino Hydro a major player in the power generation and dam and roads construction, the Vice President said modernisation of Kenya's infrastructure was a key objective in the realisation of Vision 2030.

He urged them to seek to be involved in Kenya's reconstruction efforts.

Board chairman Huang Baodong said his firm has operations in 24 African countries including Kenya where they are involved on the Thika Road superhighway project among others adding that his firm was driven by the objective of quality service within set timelines.

Mr Musyoka also held discussions with officials of China roads and bridges co-operations."

 

[Rebelkid]

Daily Nation: - News |China technology to boost Africa's food production

"China technology to boost Africa's food production
By VPPS
Posted Thursday, August 12 2010 at 11:45
BEIJING, Thursday

Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka. Photo/FILE

China has agreed to transfer her agricultural technology to Africa to enable the continent boost production and thereby guarantee world food.

The Beijing declaration for the massive agricultural technology transfer came as the China-Africa Agricultural Forum, in which Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka represented Kenya, drew to a close today.

The declaration called for a leap in Africa's agricultural output by transforming its rural agriculture through infusion of Chinese agricultural characteristics.

This will involve rural farmer education, setting up of modern farming demonstration centres, use of better quality seeds, and new technology in appropriate farming machinery as well as soil improvement techniques.

Kenya's Vice President said the 21st century belonged to Africa and he was confident that the continent will transform her economies to the extent of helping feed the rest of the world.

Reading the declaration, the China's deputy Prime Minister Mr Hui Liangyu said global food security should be the Number One priority of world governments, given that acute food shortages were bound to lead to food crisis hence social and political instability.

"China is the largest developing economy able to feed 20 per cent of the world's population on proceeds of 9 per cent of the planets arable land. If we partner with Africa with a much higher percentage of arable land yet contains most of the developing countries we should be able to guarantee international food security," he said.

He added that whereas China has the technological advantage, Africa was blessed with arable land and a better climate.

Later, Mr Musyoka met with leaders of major Chinese firms doing business in the African continent. In his meeting with the Chairman of the board of Sino Hydro a major player in the power generation and dam and roads construction, the Vice President said modernisation of Kenya's infrastructure was a key objective in the realisation of Vision 2030.

He urged them to seek to be involved in Kenya's reconstruction efforts.

Board chairman Huang Baodong said his firm has operations in 24 African countries including Kenya where they are involved on the Thika Road superhighway project among others adding that his firm was driven by the objective of quality service within set timelines.

Mr Musyoka also held discussions with officials of China roads and bridges co-operations."

Food production is only half of the story, storing the extra food and distributing them to the needy populace is going to be the hard job, i dought Africa has the infrastructure that at the moment. India should start playing bigger roles IN Africa and get their hands on the African RAW materials.

 

[redragon]

China has better ability in terms of building infrastructures for African, China simply can offer so much more than can India

 

[Armand2REP]

Why don't you help those 2 million homeless flood victims who don't even have tents to sleep in?

 

[Martian]

No off-topic posts please!

Why don't you help those 2 million homeless flood victims who don't even have tents to sleep in?

Dear China-hater,

Please stay on-topic: China shares hybrid-rice technology and training with Africa to increase food production for Africans.

If you would like to create an anti-China thread for your rants, please use the Member's section forum for off-topic posts.

Thank you.

 

[Armand2REP]

No off-topic posts please!

Dear China-hater,

Please stay on-topic: China shares hybrid-rice technology and training with Africa to increase food production for Africans.

If you would like to create an anti-China thread for your rants, please use the Member's section forum for off-topic posts.

Thank you.

Dear Mao worshiper,

Please stay on-topic: China doesn't share hybrid technology and training with Africa to increase production for Africans. Chinese do it to increase their crop yields for their plantations which ship to CHINA!

If you would like to create a "How China is good for the world" thread, why don't you look at how much, or I should say how little China actually pays in foreign aid.

 

[Martian]

China's eight new measures to enhance co-op with Africa

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (R) meets with Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, Nov. 8, 2009. (Xinhua/Li Tao)

China's measure #3 is the most impressive: "Third, China will help Africa build up financing capacity. China would provide US$10 billion in concessional loans to African countries, and support Chinese financial institutions in setting up a special loan of US$1 billion for small- and medium-sized African businesses. For the heavily indebted countries and least developed countries in Africa having diplomatic relations with China, China would cancel their debts associated with interest-free government loans due to mature by the end of 2009."

http://www.china-wire.org/2009/11/eight-new-measures-to-enhance-co-op-with-africa/

"Eight new measures to enhance co-op with Africa
November 08th, 2009 | Xinhua

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Sunday announced eight new measures the Chinese government will take to strengthen China-Africa cooperation in the next three years.

Eight new measures to enhance co-op with Africa
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao speaks at the opening ceremony of the Fourth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, November 8, 2009. [Xinhua]

Wen announced the measures while addressing the opening ceremony of the Fourth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

The eight new measures, succeeding the eight measures put forward by Chinese President Hu Jintao at the landmark Beijing Summit of the FOCAC in 2006, are aimed at pushing forward China-Africa cooperation in the next three years.

"The Chinese people cherish sincere friendship towards the African people, and China's support to Africa's development is concrete and real," said the premier.

"Whatever change may take place in the world "¦ our policy of supporting Africa's economic and social development will not change," Wen said.

As the first of the eight new measures, China proposes to establish a China-Africa partnership in addressing climate change. China would enhance cooperation on satellite weather monitoring, development and utilization of new energy sources, prevention and control of desertification and urban environmental protection. China has decided to build 100 clean energy projects for Africa covering solar power, bio-gas and small hydro-power.

Second, China will enhance cooperation with Africa in science and technology. China proposes to launch a China-Africa science and technology partnership, under which China would carry out 100 joint demonstration projects with Africa on scientific and technological research and receive 100 African postdoctoral fellows to conduct scientific research in China.

Third, China will help Africa build up financing capacity. China would provide US$10 billion in concessional loans to African countries, and support Chinese financial institutions in setting up a special loan of US$1 billion for small- and medium-sized African businesses. For the heavily indebted countries and least developed countries in Africa having diplomatic relations with China, China would cancel their debts associated with interest-free government loans due to mature by the end of 2009.

Fourth, China will further open up its market to African products. China would phase in zero-tariff treatment to 95 percent of the products from the least developed African countries having diplomatic relations with China, starting with 60 percent of the products within 2010.

Fifth, China will further enhance cooperation with Africa in agriculture. China would increase the number of its agricultural technology demonstration centers in Africa to 20, send 50 agricultural technology teams to Africa and train 2,000 agricultural technology personnel for Africa, in order to help boost the continent's food security.

Sixth, China will deepen cooperation in medical care and health. China would provide medical equipment and anti-malaria materials worth 500 million yuan (US$73.2 million) to the 30 hospitals and 30 malaria prevention and treatment centers built by China and train 3,000 doctors and nurses for Africa.

Seventh, China will enhance cooperation in human resources development and education. China would build 50 schools and train 1,500 school principals and teachers for African countries. By 2012, China would increase the number of Chinese government scholarships to Africa to 5,500, and would also train 20,000 professionals for Africa over the next three years.

Eighth, China will expand people-to-people and cultural exchanges. China proposes to launch a China-Africa joint research and exchange program to increase exchanges and cooperation, share development experience, and provide intellectual support for formulating better cooperation policies by the two sides."

 

[Martian]

Sudanese-Chinese Friendship Bridge spans over Nile River

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (R) meets with Sudanese President Omer al- Bashir in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Nov. 7, 2009. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

"Sudanese-Chinese Friendship Bridge opened on January 17 2008 in Merowe, where the dam will be built."

Sudanese-Chinese friendship bridge spans over Nile River

"Sudanese-Chinese friendship bridge spans over Nile River

Like many Africans, Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir tends to express his happiness and excitement with dance. Yet as Sudan's president, he is seldom seen dancing in public.

On Thursday morning, a smiling and relaxed al-Bashir was dancing with a crowd of his fellow countrymen, who were celebrating the completion of the Bridge of the Chinese-Sudanese Friendship in this Nile riverside town of Merowe, about 350 km north of the Sudanese capital Khartoum.

"This is an important achievement," al-Bashir told the inauguration ceremony of the 440-meter bridge, which is the only one spanning over the world's longest river in the section between Khartoum and the Sudanese-Egyptian border.

"With China's help, with the endeavor of the Sudanese people, Sudan will certainly score glorious achievements one after another along our path of construction and development," the president added.

Al-Bashir's statements won loud and lasting applause from tens of thousands of local people, who were gathering from nearby towns and villages at both sides of the Nile River to attend the ceremony.

Locals took on white or brightly colorful dresses, which they often use at various festivals, to celebrate the occasion, which marks a historic end to the painful inconvenience of no bridge for nearby areas.

With infectious smiles in the face, some were singing and dancing, some were beating drums, and others were playing traditional musical instruments.

Chinese Ambassador in Sudan, Li Chengwen, said told the ceremony that the bridge was another symbol of the deepened friendship between China and Sudan.

"The Chinese government and its people both wish Sudan to continue realizing development and prosperity, and will continue to provide various kinds of assistance to Sudan in this regard," said the ambassador.

The 20-meter wide bridge links Merowe on the eastern bank of the Nile River to Karima on the other side.

"The completion of the bridge will greatly facilitate transportation and traffic for local residents on both banks of the Nile River," Merowe mayor Sarah Ali Ahmed said, adding that there was a total population of some 1.5 million in Merowe and nearby towns.

The bridge will not only make Merowe center of a local road network in northern Sudan, but also enhance economic and tourism developments for Merowe, which is the oldest city in Sudan with a history of some 5,000 thousand years, said the beaming mayor.

Around Merowe, there are some pyramids and ruins of palaces which could be dated back to 3,000 B.C., but such tourism resources had gone basically untapped for many years because of the limitation of poor transportation, said Ahmed.

"The Bridge of the Chinese-Sudanese Friendship is really a bridge extending between the peoples of the two countries," Ahmed told Xinhua.

Friendship between Sudan and China has been deeply rooted thanks to the efforts exerted by their leadership and peoples, he added.

A teacher at Merowe's high school echoed the mayor's sentiments. "The bridge is a best gift given by the Chinese people to the Sudanese people," he said.

Construction of the bridge, which started in May of 2004, was also implemented by a Chinese construction contractor called China's Jilin International Economic and Technical Corp.

Guo Jinwei, the contractor's general manager, told Xinhua that Sudanese and Chinese constructors had not only jointly built this landmark bridge, but also fostered good friendship during the past three years when they overcame many difficulties, including sand storms and extremely hot weather, to complete the project with high quality.

The bridge was built at a [friendship] cost of 20 million U.S. dollars, half of which was donated by the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), China's biggest oil and gas producer.

Qin Anjiang, CNPC's representative who participated in the ceremony, said that it was one of the donations made by the CNPC to the Sudanese people since it came to Sudan some ten years ago.

The CNPC, which has been actively involved in Sudan's energy industry development, had donated more than 45 million U.S. dollars to the Sudanese people in the education, cultural, agricultural, transportation and medical fields, said Qin.

"The facts have proved that both China and Sudan are winners of the cooperation in the oil field, which has deepened our friendship and consolidated our cooperation in other fields," he concluded.

Source: Xinhua"

 

[Martian]

Sudan hails world's longest dam

Feature: Sudan hails world's longest dam_English_Xinhua

"Feature: Sudan hails world's longest dam
XINHUANEWS 2009-03-04 08:02:34
by Chen Gongzheng, Shao Jie

"Local people come to attend the celebration as the Merowe Dame began to generate electricity at Merowe, Sudan on Mar. 3, 2009. Merowe Dam, the longest of its kind on the world famous Nile river in Sudan's Northern province, some 450 km north of the capital city Khartoum. With a total span of 9.7 km and a maximum height of 67 meters, the Merowe Dam is a multipurpose project designed for power supply and agricultural irrigation. It has a 1.24-billion-cubic-meter reservoir that could help more than 4 million local residents living along the Nile. The dam was built by a joint venture formed by China Water Resources and Hydropower and China International Water and Electric Corp. (Xinhua/Zhai Xi)"

MEROWE, Sudan, March 3 (Xinhua) -- Squinting amid the dazzling sunshine on the brink of the Sahara Desert, Asem Khalil Idris tried to get a clear view of President Omar al-Bahir, who was addressing a crowd at the inauguration ceremony for Merowe Dam, the country's largest hydropower project.

"The power from the dam will create a lot of work opportunities," Asem, 39, a local resident coming from the Wadi Halfa town, said on Wednesday morning.

"Before today, We had to rely on diesel-fueled generators, which is noisy and very inconvenient," he said, adding that "we will have a more colorful life with less blackouts thanks to the president and the dam's builders, and the fruit trees and vegetable planted in my town will get the badly-needed irrigation."

As Bashir signed a takeover paper at noon, siren resounded over the huge dam and the vast artificial lake that has moistened the local air over the arid desert, marking the official start of power generation of the project.

"Photo taken on Mar. 3, 2009 shows a scene of the Merowe Dam in Merowe, Sudan, Mar. 3, 2009. (Xinhua/Zhai Xi)"

The 9.7-km dam is the longest one in the world with a total capacity of 1.25 million kilowatt, twice as much as Sudan's existing power supply.

Wielding his stick, encircled by entourages, Bashir danced to the rhythm of a 30-minute folk song on a table on a improvised platform. The president's trademark style was applauded by a crowd, who raised a forest of arms and chanted religious slogans.

"It's an important day and we got it finally," said Rashid in the crowd, who clapped his hands jubilantly in the crowd as the voluble president made statements and danced. "But I have not decided where to go after the dam."

Rashid, in his forties, a veteran driver, who has worked for CCMD JV, a Chinese joint venture that built the dam, for some five years.

"I hope it's not my last drive to Merowe," Rashid said with a little blue earlier on our way to the remote dam, some 450-km north of the capital city Khartoum.

The SUV took a U-turn at an intersection, where scores of people were standing on the roadside of a small town with various banners in their hands.

"This town is a local tourist attraction," Rashid said, "they are advertising for their town and the banner reads 'great place, good price' in Arabic."

A man holding a portrait of Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir (R2, front) attends a ceremony at Merowe Dam in Merowe, Sudan, Mar. 3, 2009. (Xinhua/Zhai Xi)

"CCMD (JV) rebuilt the desert road to Merowe for material transportation, and those people want to make more money because it saves a lot of time for the tourists coming from the capital," he said while flooring the accelerator pedal of the vehicle, which rustled through the strong north wind.

"It's a state-of-the-art project," said Wu Xiguo, chief engineer and deputy manager of the dam. "We won the contract at a much [more] reasonable price and finished it on time."

"The biggest challenge is the climate of Merowe," said Wu, who has got a good tan at the dam in the past six years. "The average temperature is about 40 degrees and some of my friends got malaria in the mosquito-ridden area."

"Another problem is the lack of resources," he added, "We came here in July 2003 and found nothing except the river and the infertile Sahara, so we have to import nearly everything, including toothpaste."

He said that the dam's eight 350-ton super cranes, dubbed "Gate Machine" in their jargon, were all shipped from China.

"But it pays, it will stand on the river for at least 100 years and some 4 million Sudanese people, or more than one-tenth of the total population, will benefit from the dam's irrigation system and power supply," he said.

Editor: Xiong Tong"