NAIROBI, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- Scientists from China and African countries on Wednesday pledged greater cooperation to attain some of the objectives of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) including food security and ecosystem health.
The scientists in their resolutions adopted at the end of a symposium held in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi stressed that collaboration in key areas like research, technology transfer and skills upgrade will be key to transforming economies and revitalizing habitat conservation.
Nearly 100 Chinese and African scientists attended the Sept. 25-27 symposium, titled "South-South Cooperation: China-Africa Science and Technology Cooperation and Innovation for Social and Economic Benefits."
The three-day conference was organized by the African Union Development Agency, the New Partnership for Africa's Development (AUDA-NEPAD), the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and the Mission of China to the African Union. Some of the symposium participants from governments, Pan African and Chinese research entities discussed enhanced collaboration in three key areas including food systems transformation, biodiversity conservation and water management.
The scientists who reiterated their commitment to cooperation under the BRI pledged to establish a platform to foster research, innovation and knowledge sharing to attain the broader sustainability agenda.
"We propose to hold an international forum every three years, being held in China and African countries, to exchange scientific and technological innovation achievements including the evaluation of the effectiveness of technology applications, and adjust development priorities accordingly," the scientists said in a communique.
In addition, the scientists promised to launch the "Africa Food-Water-Environment Protection and Scientific Development Action," with the aim of promoting food security, prudent use of water resources, and enhanced protection of habitats.
Some of the priority areas for Sino-African scientific collaboration to spur green growth covering 2024-2027 include technical support and training of farmers, application of new irrigation and post-harvest storage technologies, research on new water and biodiversity conservation techniques, read the communique. ■