Recently, the launching ceremony of the construction of the China-Brazil Agricultural Mechanization Cooperation Demonstration Farm was held in Apodi, Rio Grande Norte, Brazil.
The construction of China-Brazil Agricultural Mechanization Cooperation Demonstration Farm is the concrete embodiment of the implementation of the "Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Agricultural Mechanization and Agricultural Energy between China and Brazil" jointly signed by China Agricultural University, China Agricultural Machinery Industry Association, Northeast Brazil Sustainable Federation, and International People's Cooperation Association, and is also an important part of the scientific and technological assistance project of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China Agricultural University "China-Brazil International Transfer Platform for Advanced and Applicable Technologies for Agricultural Mechanization for Small and Medium-sized Farmers" presided over by Professor Yang Minli of China Agricultural University. From now on, the first batch of 31 sets of agricultural machinery and equipment, including tractors, seeders, harvesters and supporting agricultural machinery and implements provided by the Chinese side, will be demonstrated and tested in the city of Apodi, Rio Grande do Norte, the Ana Prim**esi agro-ecological production area in the state of Cialá, and the settlement of Cristina Alves in the state of Maranhão, with a core demonstration area of nearly 80 hectares (1,200 acres) and about 1,200 hectares (18,000 acres) driven by radiation. Chinese experts will educate local farmers about agricultural mechanization.
More than 1,000 people attended the event, including Zhu Qingqiao, Chinese Ambassador to Brazil, Alcmín, Brazil's Deputy Alcmín, delivered a speech, and more than 1,000 people attended the event, including Teixeira, Minister of Rural Development and Family Agriculture of Brazil, Governor of Rio Grande do Norte in Brazil, representatives of farmers from 9 states of the Northeast Brazilian Federation for Sustainability, representatives of China Agricultural University, China Agricultural Machinery Industry Association, International People's Cooperation Association, and Brazilian Rural Workers' Organization.
Zhu Qingqiao said that the construction of China-Brazil Agricultural Mechanization Cooperation Demonstration Farm is a practical measure to implement the important consensus of the two heads of state, and it is also a useful attempt for China and Brazil to work together to promote social inclusion and eradicate hunger and poverty. China is strong in the field of agricultural machinery manufacturing, and many products are very suitable for small and medium-scale agricultural production. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Brazil, and China is ready to work with Brazil to implement the consensus reached by the two heads of state, accelerate the synergy between the Belt and Road Initiative and Brazil's development strategy, and promote the upgrading of bilateral cooperation, so as to create more benefits for the people of both sides.
Alckmin and other Pakistani sides praised the Brazil-China agricultural machinery demonstration project as of great significance, which is highly in line with Lula's development strategy, and will help the northeastern region of Brazil to break through the bottleneck of backward agricultural mechanization, accelerate the improvement of local people's living standards, and promote social equity and sustainable development. The Pakistani side said that deepening relations with China is of great importance to Pakistan, and Pakistan at all levels will provide policy support for further strengthening Pakistan-China cooperation in various fields.
Paolo Teixeira, Minister of Rural Development and Family Agriculture, expressed his gratitude to the Chinese team for coming from afar, saying that it was "".A historic day for family farming in Brazil”。He said that the Chinese team has brought equipment and rich experience to take root here to improve family farming in Brazil, and hopes that China will bring more agricultural equipment to the poorest northeastern region of Brazil and invest in building factories in the future.
Professor Yang Minli, the project leader, said that through agricultural mechanization, especially the socialization of agricultural machinery, China has comprehensively improved the production efficiency of smallholder farmers, extended the industrial chain, increased added value, and promoted the increase of farmers' income500 million rural people have created employment opportunities and embarked on a path of Chinese-style agricultural mechanization and Chinese-style agricultural modernization. China's experience and practices can provide reference for developing countries, especially the Belt and Road countries. He also said that more Chinese agricultural machinery enterprises and products will be promoted to Brazil to help the development of family farming, poverty alleviation and rural revitalization in Brazil.
At present, the global hunger and food insecurity situation is very serious, and more than 3 billion people still cannot afford a healthy diet. There is therefore an urgent need to transform agrifood systems to become more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable. At the FAO Global Conference on Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization held in Rome in September 2023, Director-General QU Dongyu noted that mechanization is a powerful driver for the transformation of agrifood systems, while ensuring environmental sustainability and leaving no one, especially women and smallholder farmers, behind.
In response to the requirements of the Belt and Road Initiative and the United Nations 2030 Goals, China-Brazil cooperation in the field of agricultural mechanization will stand at a new starting point to comprehensively improve the production efficiency of family agriculture and the added value of agricultural products, create good production and living conditions for small farmers and women, achieve mutual benefit and win-win results at a higher level, and make greater contributions to promoting common development, ensuring food security, fighting hunger, poverty alleviation and sustainable human development.