Kenya holds seminar to promote China's Juncao technology in food systems

NAIROBI, March 17 (Xinhua) -- A workshop on promoting Chinese Juncao technology in food systems, poverty eradication and climate response opened Tuesday in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, bringing together policymakers, scientists, farmers and entrepreneurs.

The three-day workshop was convened by Kenya's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, the Division of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), and China's Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (FAFU).

Amson Sibanda, chief of the National Strategies and Capacity Building Branch at UNDESA's Division for SDGs, said that once adopted on a larger scale, Juncao technology will boost food security and climate resilience while transforming livelihoods in Kenya.

Kenya is a project country in the third phase of the UNDESA initiative on accelerating the SDGs, which promotes food systems, poverty reduction and climate adaptation in developing countries through Juncao technology. This phase runs from July 2025 to June 2028, Sibanda noted.

He said that Juncao technology, developed by FAFU scientists, has become a flagship model for South-South cooperation.

"The technology has been transferred to more than 100 developing countries, demonstrating strong potential for scaling across Africa, Asia, the Pacific and Latin America," Sibanda said. "We are therefore excited about the promise of Juncao technology in Kenya."

Lin Dongmei, deputy director of the China National Engineering Research Center of Juncao Technology, said its adoption has the potential to transform agri-food systems and revitalize climate action and ecosystem restoration in Kenya.

Lin said that Juncao technology can be harnessed to cultivate edible and medicinal mushrooms, produce livestock feed and green fertilizer, conserve soil and control desertification.

Dennis Onkundi, deputy director at the State Department for Livestock Development, said the three-day workshop aims to sensitize policymakers and farmers to Juncao technology and its applications in textiles, animal feed production and soil management in arid lands.

Onkundi added that Kenya has created a conducive policy and regulatory environment to promote the cultivation of Juncao grass, ensuring sufficient livestock fodder in the country.

Stephen Mwangi, a Kenyan farmer who has cultivated Juncao grass on his 10-acre farm in Kajiado County, said it has revolutionized animal husbandry and the conservation of arid lands.

According to Mwangi, Juncao grass is rich in protein, which enhances the productivity of livestock such as cattle, goats and sheep, while ensuring that nomadic communities have reliable food and income security.