PHNOM PENH, Jan. 2 (Xinhua) -- China has been playing a greater role in ensuring global food security, which is an essential guarantee for global peace and development, a senior Cambodian official has said.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with Xinhua on Friday, Ek Tha, standing vice-chairman of the Royal Government Spokesperson Unit, said China has always been a positive force in safeguarding world food security.
Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said as the world's largest developing country, China has adhered to its food security policy.
"China now has enough food to feed its nearly 1.4 billion people, and has remarkably improved the people's nutrition and life quality," he said. "Food security is the key fundamental element of human rights and once such an issue is addressed, it is already a plus contributing to global peace and development."
Tha said the world should applaud China for such a tremendous success in ensuring food security, not only for its own people, but also for the world.
"Cambodia is happy to see its iron-clad friend, China, continue to stand strong in all forms amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and Beijing, even during this difficult time, has provided some medical equipment and supplies to Cambodia and other countries to fight the virus," he said.
"It's a good idea for countries to learn from China's good lessons and experience in dealing with food security," he added.
China declared its poverty reduction work successful in December 2020, as nearly 100 million Chinese had been lifted out of poverty since 2013.
"I'm amazed to hear and see China's efforts in reducing poverty rapidly," he said. "Evidently speaking, nearly 100 million poor people have shaken off poverty."
He said China's development has also contributed to improving bilateral trade and investment relations between China and other countries.
"China's support for developing countries is crucial to ensure global peace and prosperity," he said. Enditem