Establishing a platform for technology and innovation transfer through China-Africa cooperation is vital for transforming Africa’s food systems, especially amid climate change, pests, and declining soil fertility, experts said during CGIAR Science Week in Nairobi. At a side event themed “Building Bridges”, participants stressed that leveraging plant breeding, pest control, irrigation, AI, genomics, and nanotechnology will help address persistent hunger and malnutrition across the continent.
CGIAR Managing Director Ismahane Elouafi emphasized the need for investments in soil health, water management, and high-yield crop varieties to reduce Africa’s $100 billion annual food import bill. She said African countries could greatly benefit from Chinese agricultural technologies under South-South cooperation. The event featured key Chinese partners including the BGI Group and the Chinese Academy of Sciences. BGI Chairman Wang Jian said their AI-powered sequencing technology can digitize millions of germplasm samples, boosting crop breeding and food resilience.
0 Comments