Practical help

As part of the sharing of grain storage technologies, practical assistance for Africa has been ongoing for some time.

Henan University of Technology (HAUT), which specializes in food science and technology, organized two special training courses on grain storage technology in July 2008 and April 2009 respectively. More than 30 agricultural officials and technicians from over 20 African countries such as Zimbabwe, Botswana, Ghana and Malawi attended the program.

The program serves a duel purpose. It helps to solve the practical problems African technicians have in grain storage, while also playing important roles in disseminating China's advanced agricultural technologies to Africa, said agricultural expert and HAUT's Vice President Chen Fusheng.

At the Beijing Summit of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in 2006, China promised to enhance cooperation in human resources development. Ten agricultural technology demonstration centers would be established in African countries, 100 high-level agricultural technicians would be dispatched there, and efforts would be made to train Africans. By the end of 2009, China had trained a total of about 15,000 personnel of different professions for Africa. HAUT's program is among those that have proven successful.

At the fourth FOCAC Ministerial Meeting held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt in 2009, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao announced to increase the number of agricultural technology demonstration centers in Africa to 20. So far, 14 such centers have been established and put into service and a total of 104 veteran agricultural technicians have been sent to African countries such as Sierra Leone, Namibia and Morocco. 

In addition to providing aid, David Gbenjen said that China has contributed training and exported technology to Africa to help strengthen the continent's ability to ensure food security.

"There is an old Chinese saying, 'Give a man a fish, you have fed him for today; teach a man to fish, and you have fed him for a lifetime'. Now, in terms of [Sino-African cooperation in] agricultural technologies, we can see something that is on the ground," he said.

People vs Grain 2009

Weight (Tons of Grain) 

World and China grain output and percentage (2009)

World: 2.25 billion tons

China: 530 million tons   (23.6% of world grain output)

World and China population and percentage (2009)

World:6.5 billion

China:1.3 billion (20% of world population)

Source: National Bureau of Statistics, State Administrationof Grain