WINDHOEK, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- The second phase of the China-Namibia South-South Cooperation Project has trained more than 2,300 Namibians in agricultural and aquaculture skills, a senior Namibian official said Wednesday.
The project delivered 79 training sessions involving 2,351 participants, with women accounting for 51.3 percent and young people 33.6 percent, said Ruthy Masake, deputy minister of agriculture, fisheries, water and land reform, at the closing ceremony in Windhoek, Namibia's capital.
The project is a partnership between Namibia and China, facilitated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Chinese experts and technicians worked alongside Namibian counterparts at six locations, Masake said.
The second phase was officially launched in 2024 with funding of 1.7 million U.S. dollars from the FAO-China South-South Cooperation Strategic Alliance Trust Fund, according to FAO.
Masake said the activities sought to address challenges including poor soil conditions, limited access to quality certified seeds, low productivity among smallholder poultry farmers, shortages of technical skills and underdeveloped inland aquaculture.
The project also held 32 practical demonstrations involving 1,022 participants, she added.
Masake thanked China for its continued support, saying the partnership had supported technology transfer, skills development and local production capacity.
She further called on Namibia, China and FAO to build on the project's results and ensure that the knowledge and skills gained could continue to support food security, agricultural productivity and rural livelihoods.
In the first phase of the project from 2015 to 2017, China sent 15 experts and technicians to support crop production and veterinary laboratory work.
