Agricultural hub in Shaanxi province nurtures talent for SCO members

XI'AN — The mythic hero Hou Ji is said to have taught the Chinese people how to grow grain in the Yangling region of Shaanxi province some 4,000 years ago.

It remains a beacon of agricultural knowledge today, with over 2,200 agricultural officials and technicians from Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states having received training at the SCO Demonstration Base for Agricultural Technology Exchange and Training in Yangling over the past five years.

In addition to hands-on training, the base has also delivered specialized agricultural technology lectures, attracting over 40,000 online learners.

The figures were released on Wednesday during the annual symposium of the China Center for SCO Studies at the Yangling Agricultural Hi-tech Industrial Demonstration Zone.

The event drew over 100 experts, scholars and business leaders, underscoring the base's role in fostering international cooperation in agriculture.

Chen Bo, director of the China Center for SCO Studies, emphasized the importance of collaborative efforts among member countries to address common risks and challenges.

Wei Feng, from Yangling's Northwest A&F University, said: "In terms of food security, for example, their complementary advantages provide a solid foundation for cooperation. Future opportunities lie in areas such as food production, foreign trade and agricultural talent and technology exchanges."

With less than 9 percent of the world's arable land, China produces around a quarter of the world's grain and feeds about a fifth of the global population.

China has been an active participant in global food and agriculture governance, engaging in agricultural science and technology exchanges with more than 140 countries and regions.

China has also promoted over 1,000 agricultural technologies and trained more than 14,000 hybrid rice specialists in developing countries.

Covering an area of about 135 square kilometers, Yangling is roughly 80 km west of Xi'an, Shaanxi's provincial capital, where the ancient Silk Road started.

Xinhua