Bilateral meeting with H.E. Erkin Tuniyaz, Chairman of the People’s Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region

Urumqi – On 13 May, FAO Director-General, QU Dongyu, met with H.E. Erkin Tuniyaz, Chairman of the People’s Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, during his visit to the Region.

H.E. Tuniyaz warmly welcomed the Director-General and expressed appreciation for FAO’s support to Xinjiang over the past three decades, including in forage production, saline-alkali land improvement, desertification control, water-saving irrigation and sustainable agricultural development. He noted that FAO-supported cooperation had contributed to agricultural efficiency, farmers’ income growth and Xinjiang’s transition in its agriculture produces from big quantity to stronger competitivity.

H.E. Tuniyaz highlighted Xinjiang’s role as an important gateway for opening to the west and a high-quality supply base for agricultural and livestock products. He briefed the Director-General on Xinjiang’s agricultural progress, including cotton production, farmers’ income growth and expanding agricultural cooperation with Central Asian countries, and proposed further cooperation with FAO in high-quality agricultural development, water-saving irrigation, dryland agriculture, poverty reduction, agricultural value chains, international quality certification and ecological protection.

The Director-General thanked H.E. Tuniyaz for the warm welcome, recalled his first visit to Xinjiang in 1997, and commended the region’s agricultural progress and strategic role in regional cooperation. He welcomed the proposals and reaffirmed FAO’s readiness to support Xinjiang in strengthening cooperation with Central Asia, including through technical assistance, capacity development, innovation, partnerships, and support for more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agrifood systems, while emphasizing the need to balance agricultural and industrial development with environmental sustainability.