During the 1990s, Nanjing Agricultural University (NAU) was one of the first Chinese universities to initiate cooperation with institutions of higher education in Africa and has been working closely with Egerton University in Kenya. Under the China-Kenya Higher Education Collaboration Plan (1994-2002), Egerton and NAU have collaborated on teaching, research, laboratory construction and personnel training. Professor Zhou Guanghong, President of NAU, spoke to ChinAfrica about the university's partnership with Egerton over the past 20 years and future plans for collaboration. Edited excerpts from the interview:

What programs have been launched between NAU and Egerton under "The 20+20 Cooperation Plan for Chinese and African Institutions of Higher Education"? How have they progressed since 2010 and what's your plan for 2012?

First, we set up an expert station at Egerton, providing an exchange platform for teaching, research and joint training programs. Each year we send six to eight experts to work in Kenya. Second, we helped to build an Internet lab at Egerton to ease the shortage of computer networking facilities. Third, NAU has helped expand Egerton's library collections by providing English textbooks on a wide range of subjects, something we will continue to do this year. Fourth, NAU has brought in eight Ph.D students from Egerton to study agronomy, horticulture and veterinary medicine. This year, enrollment will be expanded to the social sciences and humanities.

How many African students are currently at NAU? What kinds of scholarships do you offer?

Currently, we have 35 students from 16 countries in Africa. Each year NAU provides training to around 150 Africans in areas such as farming, aquaculture, and information agriculture. They receive financial support from the Chinese government, the Jiangsu Provincial Government and NAU. We plan to increase our enrollment in the future as well as launch Sino-African student exchange programs. NAU undergraduates in these programs will practice-teach, while graduates will research African issues and write their dissertations at African universities.

Can you talk about NAU's China-Kenya Horticultural Technology Center and its focus on Kenyan farmers?

The Center was set up by NAU and Egerton in 1995 to provide horticultural technologies such as batch production, seed selection and hydroponics suitable for agricultural conditions in Kenya.

Since 2008, NAU has held two annual training programs at Egerton: Quality and Safety of Agro-products and Crop Greenhouse Production.  Over the years, we have trained more than 200 senior agricultural technicians and experts from over 10 African countries.

The Kenyan government has recognized the center and its activities. Technologies developed at the center have been used on thousands of hectares of farmland. Former President Daniel Arap Moi inspected the center and spoke highly of China's agricultural technologies.

And NAU's African Agriculture Research Center – what happens there?

The center was set up in January 2007, the first of its kind in China. It carries out bilateral and multilateral cooperation in agricultural research, and provides advice to the Chinese and African governments. Currently, NAU and Egerton are carrying out "win-win" collaborative research projects, such as development and utilization of new germplasms resistant to wheat stem rust. In cooperation with the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations, we have carried out "South-South Cooperation" strategic research in food security. NAU has also twice hosted "Go to Africa, Seek Development" forums.

In August 2011, NAU and Egerton submitted a proposal for a Confucius Institute for Agriculture.  Similar in philosophy to existing Confucius Institutes focused on culture and language, we hope to promote both Chinese culture and agricultural technologies with the goal of reducing food shortages and poverty in Kenya.

What knowledge have you accumulated through your cooperation so far?

China-Africa agricultural cooperation has been mutually beneficial and NAU continues to focus on the relevance and continuity of our programs to ensure their effectiveness. For instance, wheat rust is a devastating disease threatening food security in Africa; our cooperation will provide valuable germplasm resources for breeding disease-resistant wheat. This is significant for food security not only in China and Kenya, but for the entire world.

About Nanjing Agricultural University

> NAU is a key multidisciplinary university located in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu Province. Along with its core strengths in agriculture and life sciences, NAU also offers competitive programs in economics, management, engineering, law and the arts. Today, NAU's 16 schools offer 60 undergraduate programs, 157 master's programs, 77 doctoral programs and 13 postdoctoral programs. NAU maintains close cooperative ties with over 150 universities in more than 30 countries and regions around the world. As of 2012, more than 400 international students study at NAU.