FUZHOU, China, (Pakistan Point News - 21st Dec, 2019) The UAE's Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, MOCCAE, and China’s National Engineering Research Centre for Juncao today inked a letter of intent to promote cooperation in sustainable agriculture with the aim of enhancing food diversity through leveraging agritech for desert farming.
The signing took place on the sidelines of a four-day official visit of a UAE delegation to China that concludes today. The visit seeks to diversify and strengthen environmental cooperation between the two countries.
Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, who headed the UAE delegation, and Professor Lin Zhanxi, Chief Scientist at the Centre, signed the letter of intent at the Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University in the Chinese city of Fuzhou.
The two parties vowed to explore future collaboration opportunities in implementing sustainable agriculture pilot projects, conducting research activities, and organising capacity-building training programmes.
Commenting on the signing, Dr. Al Zeyoudi said, "Sharing a vision of a more sustainable future, the UAE and China have joined forces on multiple fronts, including agriculture and the food industry. Through the letter of intent, we aspire to expand our areas of cooperation to enhance the efficient usage of agricultural technology as a way of contributing to environmental sustainability – one of the highest priorities for our country."
For his part, Professor Lin said, "It is an honour to work with the Ministry, and we look forward to a successful cooperation, especially on environmental sustainability projects."
Dr. Al Zeyoudi toured the Centre, China’s only national-level Juncao research platform, to familiarise himself with its cutting-edge technologies that are conducive to sustainable agricultural development and contribute to the fight against desertification.
As part of the visit to China, Dr. Al Zeyoudi attended multiple high-level meetings with Chinese officials to discuss best practices and the latest technologies in the environmental sector.
These included meetings with Dr. Zhou Jinfeng, Secretary-General of the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation, Ma Xuezhong, President of China-Arab Investment Fund Management Company, Ma Jun, Director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, Owen Ma, Vice President of Cargill China, Jiaman Jin, Executive Director of the Beijing-based Global Environmental Institute, and Li Wei, Chairman of Beijing Goke Agricultural Machinery.
The delegates also visited several Chinese entities, such as the AI companies SenseTime, ByteDance, and 4Paradigm, China Wholesale Market, the state-owned chemicals giant Sinochem Group, Beijing Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, and Beijing Wildlife Park.
