Dr. Sangmin Nam, Director of Environment and Development Division, ESCAP

Dr. Li Yutong, Head of Centre of Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization, ESCAP

Distinguished delegates,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good afternoon! It is my pleasure to attend this Regional Workshop on Combating Air Pollution from Biomass Burning through Mechanization Solutions for Integrated Straw Management. I would like to express my sincere appreciation to CSAM and the Environment and Development Division for the arrangement of this workshop.

China funded the project titled "Enabling sustainable and climate-smart agriculture in Cambodia, Indonesia and Nepal" through the China-ESCAP Cooperation Programme (CECP). We appreciate the efficient implementation and fruitful outcomes of this project. In the past two years, through policy data analysis and capacity training, the project has improved existing production patterns in the pilot countries, provided alternatives to straw burning and promoted sustainable and climate-friendly agriculture, which contributes greatly to air pollution management and climate actions in the Asia-Pacific region. The project has also been cited as a good practice in South-South and Triangular Cooperation by the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation. In this regard, I recognize the efforts of the project team headed by Dr. Li Yutong, Head of CSAM.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Agriculture is closely linked to climate change and air quality, both as an influencer and a contributor. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates that at least one-fifth of total greenhouse gas emissions come from the agricultural sector, making the development of climate-smart agriculture a necessary requirement for climate change mitigation and adaptation.

China attaches great importance to climate change and air pollution, and committed to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality before 2060. The concept of green development has been integrated into the rural revitalization strategy of China. While ensuring food security as its top priority, China continues to promote the digital agriculture and sustainable mechanization solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in agriculture, making a significant contribution to climate change mitigation and air quality improvement. This month, the Chinese government released the No.1 policy document on the development of agriculture, which has been issued every year for 20 consecutive years since the beginning of the 21st century. This document emphasizes to "strengthen the protection of agricultural resources and ecology to promote the green transformation of agriculture", which provides a strong institutional guarantee for sustainable agricultural development.

China vigorously develops the agricultural recycling economy, the level of agricultural waste utilization is steadily improved, the comprehensive utilization rate of straw exceeds 88%, among which, the annual utilization of straw fueling is 57 million tons, equivalent to replacement energy about 28.5 million tons of standard coal, which can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 71 million tons. China improves the arable land resources protection and utilization, and constantly promotes the protection of black soil. With these efforts, China’s high standard farmland area has reached 60 million hectares, and the integrated mechanization rate of agriculture exceeds 85%. The use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides for the major food crops has maintained negative growth for five consecutive years, and the coverage of green pest control has reached 46%, contributing more to food security.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

There is an old Chinese saying, "Food is the primary concern of the ordinary people." Currently, extreme weather and natural disasters are frequent, agricultural development is at risk, and global food security is facing challenges.

First, we should promote technological innovation and accelerate the research of core agricultural technologies. Sustainable agricultural mechanization should be promoted to raise the level of agricultural machinery and equipment for farmers. Developed countries should provide technical and financial support to help developing countries to enhance food production and sustainable agricultural development, so as to strengthen their ability to improve food security.

Second, we should deepen cooperation in agriculture, promote policy exchanges and practice sharing, and accelerate coordination of agricultural policies to build a fair, reasonable, sustainable and stable global agricultural trade order. Global and regional food and agriculture governance should be improved together to maintain global food security.

Third, we should develop close partnership to address common challenges such as climate change, air pollution and soil degradation, and establish a close partnership of governments, international organizations, the private sector and think tanks to jointly promote the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Last year, the 7th session of the Committee on Environment and Development at ministerial level adopted the Asia-Pacific Regional Action Programme on Air Pollution, calling on member states to "Provide technical assistance for the agricultural sector to support efforts to effectively manage regional air pollution, including that caused by biomass burning", which reflects the willingness of the Asia-Pacific region to strengthen cooperation in sustainable agriculture and climate actions and air pollution management.

This CECP project is a good practice for promoting sustainable agricultural development in the Asia-Pacific region, and will provide a good basis for regional countries to implement the Ministerial Declaration and the Regional Programme on Air Pollution with the goal of implementing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. China is willing to continue to support ESCAP and CSAM in promoting sustainable agricultural development and managing air pollution in the Asia-Pacific region, actively carry out cooperation in related fields. We will work together with Asia-Pacific countries to promote environmental and ecological protection and sustainable development.

I wish this workshop a fruitful discussion! Thank you!