2025-07-01, Rome (Italy)

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) of the People’s Republic of China reaffirmed their strong partnership and commitment to advancing South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC) and accelerating agrifood systems transformation at the 13th Annual Consultation Meeting (ACM) of the FAO-China SSC Programme. The meeting, held in person at FAO Headquarters in Rome, was co-chaired by FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol and Mr Jiang Wensheng, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Bechdol praised the remarkable achievements and progress of the FAO-China SSC Programme during 2024–2025, attributing the success to the close collaboration and dedication of both FAO and China. She underscored the Programme’s significant contribution to advancing FAO’s corporate initiatives, including the Hand-in-Hand Initiative, One Country One Priority Product (OCOP), 1000 Digital Villages, and Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS). Ms. Bechdol expressed her deep appreciation to the Government of China for its sustained support, which has been instrumental in translating these initiatives into impactful action on the ground.

Vice Minister Jiang Wensheng also commended the milestone achievements of the Programme and praised FAO’s efforts in driving forward the tangible results seen during the reporting period. He emphasized the importance of aligning Programme activities with national agricultural development plans and country-driven priorities, tailoring interventions to local needs, fostering stronger synergies to leverage additional resources, and ensuring robust monitoring and regular reviews to sustain impact and enable continuous learning.

The meeting reviewed the Programme’s progress in 2024–2025. Both sides acknowledged the Programme’s expanding and diversified portfolio, comprising 22 global, regional, national, and triangular cooperation projects, with a cumulative budget of nearly USD 68 million. These projects span a wide array of thematic areas, including crop and livestock production, aquaculture, plant health, pest and pesticide management, digital agriculture, and sustainable water and soil management.

Both sides recognized a number of major achievements over the past year, including the continued mainstreaming of SSTC into FAO’s Strategic Framework and flagship initiatives; strengthened bilateral and multilateral partnerships; greater contributions to high-level global policy dialogues; enhanced monitoring and evaluation systems; and improved communication and outreach, which significantly boosted the Programme’s visibility and impact.

The meeting approved the workplan for 2025-2026 and endorsed in principle six new project proposals for funding under the FAO-China SSC Programme. In the context of the workplan for 2025-2026, this ACM explored strategies to further enhance Programme delivery. Key areas of focus include strengthening coordination between FAO and China, expanding institutional partnerships between Chinese and developing countries centres of excellence, mobilizing additional resources—including from traditional donor, private sector and public finance investment—and scaling up outreach and communication to broaden the Programme’s global visibility and impact.

The annual meeting concluded with a strong consensus by FAO and China to continue deepening their collaboration and to further leverage SSTC as a catalyst for agrifood systems transformation and accelerate implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.

News

Sustainable School Feeding Network (RAES) member countries discuss proposed regional agenda for school feeding

News

Uganda Flags Off First-Ever Shipment of Dried Chili to China