ROME, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- For families living through conflict, a small amount of assistance can go a long way.
Liang Xiao has seen living proof of this through her work with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) headquartered in Rome, where she has helped coordinate a poverty reduction and agricultural assistance project in Sudan's Red Sea State.
Supported by China and launched in Suakin in May 2025, the project provides much-needed assistance to local communities while helping them build more sustainable livelihoods. So far, more than 40,000 people have benefited from the project, including a family in Red Sea State who made a living by raising sheep.
Years of drought had degraded local pastures and made livestock feed increasingly difficult to find. The conflict made things worse, disrupting markets and livelihoods. When the family could no longer afford animal feed, they had to give their sheep sorghum stalks and other crop residues.
Through the project, the family received 100 kilograms of concentrated animal feed so that the sheep could produce milk for the children. Any extra milk could be sold at local market, bringing in some income for the household.
"What may look like just a bag of seeds or animal feed can seem insignificant to many of us," Liang told Xinhua. "But for a family affected by a conflict, it can become a turning point, helping them resume production, improve their livelihoods and rebuild confidence in the future."
The project also focused on helping women. It provided small cold-storage units for 200 women who earn a living by selling fish, according to Liang. This allows the women to keep fish fresh for longer and sell it farther afield.
The project has also trained women to make fishing nets, providing them with another skill and a potential new source of income.
"The project didn't just give me a fishing net. It gave me dignity," said one of the women.
Many of these projects, Liang said, are "small yet impactful". Instead of large infrastructure projects, they focus on practical needs in agriculture and people's daily lives, including production supplies, technical training and livelihood support.
Carrying out the project in Sudan has been far from easy. The ongoing conflict has disrupted transport and markets and pushed up procurement costs, while differences in local social and cultural practices have also brought challenges. Project teams have had to adjust their plans, find alternative ways to deliver supplies and work closely with local organizations to make sure that assistance reaches those who need it.
"China has funding, technology and development experience that can help meet the needs of developing countries," Liang said. "FAO provides a platform to bring them together."
"We hope more people can benefit from these projects and that they can contribute to better production, better nutrition, a better environment and a better life," she added. ■