Developing nations can adopt China's green agriculture philosophy, poverty alleviation models and technological achievements through cooperation between China and the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), an official from FAO told China Media Group.

The FAO is hosting a workshop in Rome, Italy, to launch a global initiative under its "One Country One Priority Product" (OCOP) program, backed by the FAO-China South-South cooperation program. The collaboration aims to leverage China's advanced agricultural practices, technologies and experience to support the sustainable development of agricultural products in developing countries.

Launched in September 2021, the FAO's OCOP initiative is dedicated to fostering sustainable food value chains for agricultural products. Its core objectives are to enhance access to healthy diets, improve farmer livelihoods and stimulate economic growth worldwide. To date, 95 FAO members are participating in the OCOP framework, promoting the sustainable development of 56 distinct products.

"A crucial aspect of South-South cooperation is disseminating China's effective technologies and experiences internationally," said Xia Jingyuan, executive secretary of the FAO OCOP Secretariat. "Utilizing this initiative, I believe we can effectively showcase China's advanced agricultural achievements and contribute significantly to global agricultural development, food security and nutrition."

The ongoing workshop marks the formal commencement of the OCOP global project's implementation in 15 pilot countries, including Bangladesh, Egypt and Uzbekistan.

An official from Lesotho's Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Nutrition underscored the tangible benefits already being realized. He noted that agricultural funding and technological support from China have substantially boosted potato cultivation in Lesotho.

"Many people in our country rely on potato farming for their livelihoods, making it a unique agricultural product for us," the official explained. "China's support, primarily financial and technical, is helping our nation better develop this specialty."