The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) signs a memorandum of understanding on strengthening a partnership to help the Chinese agriculture industry go global in Beijing on Sept. 20, 2016. [Photo: He Shan/China.org.cn]
The China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) signed a memorandum of understanding on strengthening a partnership to help the Chinese agriculture industry go global in Beijing on Tuesday.
The signing came after the State Council issued several opinions on promoting reform and innovation to accelerate agricultural modernization recently.
The MoU will promote collaboration and assistance between CCPIT and the Ministry of Agriculture in areas such as implementing national strategies and policies, increasing overseas investment and trade in the agricultural sector, ensuring trade and investment facilitation, building overseas agricultural cooperation demonstration zones, and improving government policies and regulations on overseas cooperation on agriculture.
"Agriculture is a key part of national strategy," said CCPIT Chairman Jiang Zengwei. "We must help Chinese agriculture go global, as people have an increased demand for agricultural products with improved quality."
He said the signing of the MoU was of great importance and signals a new level of partnership between the CCPIT and the Ministry of Agriculture.
Qu Dongyu, vice minister of agriculture, said promoting overseas cooperation in agriculture is a pressing job to implement the "Belt and Road" initiative.
He hoped the two signatories could join hands to improve the system of overseas cooperation to aid Chinese agricultural equipment manufacturers and their technologies and services "go global." The central government issued a No.1 Document addressing agricultural issues in January this year. It declared: "The agricultural industry should make plans for overseas cooperation, strengthen cooperation in investment, trade, science & technology as well as animal and plant quarantine with countries along the Belt and Road."
China has invested a total of US$7.18 billion in overseas agricultural projects, making up 10.9 percent of total outbound investment.
