Xu Jinze (second from left) conducts research on soil quality in Bama with local partners (COURTESY PHOTO)

In the emerald-green rice fields of Bama, the main rice producing area in Burkina Faso, young rice plants are growing fast and will soon be ready for harvest. This year's rice production is expected to reach 5 tons per hectare, while the average rice yield in the country was only 2.2 tons per hectare not long ago.

Pascal Zongo, 52, is the owner of a local rice field in Bama, but he is no ordinary farmer. The former student of Hohai University in China is now working as a technician at the Burkina Faso Rice Center. As a fluent speaker of Mandarin, he is also one of the translators for the first group of Chinese agricultural experts dispatched to Burkina Faso.

"By translating for a Chinese rice expert, I was able to learn several techniques and methods. I saw how it is possible to increase the rice yield. So I decided to rent half a hectare of rice field and try to grow rice myself, and I am confident that I will succeed," said Zongo. The Chinese rice expert for whom Zongo translated is Xu Jinze, deputy head of the Chinese expert group to Burkina Faso.

Xu is an agricultural researcher at the Agricultural Development Center of Qianjiang City, in central China's Hubei Province. Aged 57, he is no rookie when it comes to agricultural projects. He visited Africa several times and took part in a number of cooperation projects between China and local partners. As such, he has extensive experience and knowledge related to rice cultivation in African countries, having previously spent two years in Nigeria and one year in Tanzania.

On May 26, 2018, China and Burkina Faso announced the resumption of their diplomatic relations after a 24-year-long freeze. At the request of the Burkinabe Government, seven Chinese agricultural experts, including Xu, and two translators were sent to Burkina Faso by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China. Their mission was to plan and carry out an agricultural cooperation project focused on rice culture.

"Burkina Faso needs more experts in the field of rice cultivation. I hope my knowledge and experience will help them boost rice production. In addition, I am also very happy to be able to take part once again in an agricultural cooperation project in Africa before my retirement," Xu told ChinAfrica.

Accurate diagnosis

According to Xu, the eating habits of the Burkinabe people have changed over the past years, and local people tend to include more and more refined grains in their diet, which means more rice and wheat. But since local weather conditions are not suitable for the cultivation of wheat, rice has become the most important grain for the Burkinabe people.

"For the moment, rice consumption in Burkina Faso is increasing at the rate of 7 percent every year, but domestic rice production can only meet 40 percent of the demand. The other 60 percent must be imported, and this costs about $100 million each year, which is a huge financial burden for the Burkinabe Government. Boosting domestic rice production is therefore an urgent matter," said Xu.

But in order to do this, several challenges will have to be overcome. Landlocked in West Africa, Burkina Faso has a harsh tropical climate and a landscape of savannah. Soil is mostly infertile and arable land is scarce. Moreover, due to a lack of infrastructure and agricultural technologies, irrigation is mainly dependent on rainfall, which significantly restricts rice yield. In addition, the shortage of agricultural technicians is also a major problem.

"We have decided to focus on canal maintenance, agricultural mechanization demonstration, seed selection, and technical training. We will work with local technicians to solve these problems step by step and increase rice production," said Xu.

To this end, the Chinese expert group has set up three working bases: one in Ouagadougou, the capital, one in Bagré, an agricultural region, and one in Bama, the main rice production area, where Xu is based.

Prescribing remedies

"Although there are quite a few irrigation canals in the Bama region, most are damaged and therefore unusable. It is urgent to repair them and build new ones," said Xu. According to him, of the 1,200 hectares of rice fields, about 700 hectares are unusable during the dry season, as a direct consequence of the lack of infrastructure. "Ensuring stable irrigation is the key to increasing rice production," added the Chinese expert.

With the help of Burkinabe technicians, Chinese experts quickly got to work. In total, 345 meters of canals were built, and 662 meters of canals and valves of 12 gates repaired. Hundred hectares of rice field were newly irrigated, which has benefited more than 1,200 local inhabitants. According to Xu, there is also a need to better use natural rainfall during the rainy season between June and October to help develop rice cultivation. In addition, Chinese experts have also conducted a number of agricultural technical demonstrations, such as that of a hand operated rice transplantation machine. "With the help of this machine, transplanting rice on a 1,500-square-meter rice field only takes an hour and a half, which is 20 times faster than when using traditional methods." As a result, rice yield has also risen significantly to 5.7 tons per hectare, an increase of 3.2 tons per hectare.

Xu and other members of the expert group also conducted field experiments using six high-quality rice varieties, in order to identify which varieties are most suitable to local conditions. Two of them, namely Hanyou 3 and Fengliangyou 1, gave the best yields, namely 7 tons and 6.8 tons of rice per hectare.

In order for these technologies and know-how to be fully transferred to his partners, Xu has also paid much attention to training local talent and experts. Under his initiative, three training sessions on seed production technologies were held in Bama, bringing together 243 participants. In addition, Xu has written a number of research papers on rice and cotton culture, which will serve as an important reference for local agricultural authorities in Burkina Faso.

For all the achievements he has made in the field of rice culture and more, Xu was given a special award by the Ministry of Agriculture and Hydro-Agricultural Development of Burkina Faso on June 27.

A new beginning

The first part of the cooperation project has been fully completed in June. While waiting for the two governments to negotiate the details and planning for the second part, which should take place over a period of two years, some of the Chinese experts may continue to work on the ground in Burkina Faso, including Xu. In the meantime, they will conduct technical demonstrations, research and training to gather technical information for future projects.

"Although we are currently going through a period of transition, we continue to perform our tasks strictly according to our work plan, to ensure that the second part of the project will run smoothly," said Xu.

(Comments to lijing@chinafrica.cn)