On October 21-22, Prof. Sun Tan, Vice President of CAAS, met with senior officials from the Department of Science and Technology of South Africa and the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries of Tanzania, who attended the Ministerial Workshop on Digital Agriculture and Rural Revitalization for BRI Partner Countries in Beijing, to discuss deeper cooperation in agricultural technology between China and Africa.

Prof. Sun Tan emphasized that CAAS values agricultural technology cooperation with African countries. Guided by the Beijing Action Plan (2025-2027) adopted at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China is working with African countries to build the China-Africa Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Alliance (CAASTIA), a platform that aims to support agricultural modernization in Africa. In the future, CAAS is willing to collaborate with South Africa in animal disease prevention and with Tanzania in animal feed and agricultural product processing, advancing the application of agricultural technologies via enterprises both in China and Africa, and supporting the implementation of the Plan for China Supporting Africa’s Agricultural Modernization.

The African delegations appreciated the role of CAASTIA to ensure food security and poverty reduction in Africa. They will support CAASTIA activities, and contribute to the sustainable agricultural development in China and Africa.

Prof. Felix Dakora, Senior Advisor of CAAS, Former President of the African Academy of Sciences, representatives from Department of International Cooperation, and Biotechnology Research Institute of CAAS attended the meetings.