On the morning of December 3rd, local time, the Ministry of Commerce’s foreign aid training project “Workshop on Wetland Conservation and Management Technology in Uganda” jointly undertaken by the China National Bamboo Research Center and the Department of Wetlands Management of the NFGA was held in Ugandan capital Kampala successfully. Counselor Zhao Xiufen of the Economic and Commercial Counsellor's Office of the Chinese Embassy in Uganda, former State Minister of the Uganda Ministry of Water and Environment, Secretary General of the Uganda Bamboo Association Ms. Hon. M. Flavia Nabugere, Commissioner of the Ministry of Education and Sports of Uganda Ms. Safinah Kisu Museene, Assistant Commissioner of the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development of Uganda Mr. Robert Okudi, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Natural Protected Areas Management of the NFGA Yuan Jiming, Director of Training Center at the School of Civil Engineering of Ningbo Polytechnic Professor Wang Hailin attended the opening ceremony and gave speeches.
Counselor Zhao Xiufen congratulated the smooth launch of the workshop and expressed gratitude to all parties actively preparing for the workshop. Zhao cited the effectiveness of Sino-Uganda trade and investment in Uganda, pointed out that this year’s foreign aid training has enrolled more than 500 students in Uganda, and human resource training has become the basis for implementing “the Belt and Road” strategy and the example of the fulfilling of the resolutions made in the summit between Chinese and Ugandan leaders in June this year.
In Yuan Jiming’s speech, Yuan explained the important role and challenges wetland ecosystems face, as well as the unremitting efforts and pioneering measures of the Chinese government in the protection and rational use of wetland resources. Yuan said that China and Uganda are facing similar ecological protection issues, and they can learn from each other and communicate through the platform of the training courses to achieve development together.
Officials and student representatives from relevant Ugandan ministries and commissions expressed their gratitude to the Chinese government, saying that this training course will definitely help build the management capabilities of wetland and other natural resources, promote exchanges in professional fields between China and Uganda, and deepen traditional friendship.
The opening ceremony was presided over by Secretary Li Dongyang of the Economic and Commercial Counsellor’s Office of the Chinese Embassy in Uganda. The participants included representatives from the Department of Wetlands Management of the NFGA, the China National Bamboo Research Center, and Chinese-funded institutions in Uganda. This training course is the first to be held abroad by China's wetland protection field, and it is also the first time that the China National Bamboo Research Center organizes a training course in Africa, with a total of 45 students enrolled. In addition to lectures and seminars, students will also be organized to visit several important international wetlands in Uganda, so as to effectively conduct training according to the actual needs of Uganda. (Shen Kai/the China National Bamboo Research Center)
