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Interview: Kyrgyzstan-China agricultural cooperation flourishing: minister

Xinhua, May 30, 2016 Adjust font size:

Agricultural cooperation between Kyrgyzstan and China has been booming in recent years, with traditional cultivation and the trade of agricultural products having become the most heated areas of such cooperation, a Kyrgyz official said.

Zhanybek Kerimaliev, deputy agricultural minister of Kyrgyzstan, said Friday in an interview with Xinhua that the two nations are also trying to expand their cooperation in such fields as agricultural industry zones, as part of their efforts to upgrade bilateral strategic partnership announced by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Kyrgyz counterpart Almazbek Atambaev during Xi's visit to the Central Asian country in 2013.

The Kyrgyz official also said two-way trade of agricultural products has been increasing.

"We export vegetables, leather and wool and import mainly meat products, such as chicken, pork, eggs," he said, adding that Kyrgyzstan's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) last year will not hinder its trade with China, his country's main partner.

"The Chinese side has been rendering a lot of aid to Kyrgyzstan," having helped Kyrgyzstan train professionals and promote technical innovation in agriculture, where Kyrgyzstan has longed for China's investment and assistance, Kerimaliev said.

"The Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China is working closely with us and rendering assistance in the construction of greenhouses," one of the country's priorities in agricultural development, Kerimaliev said.

The official also said the two nations are discussing the establishment of logistics centers in Kyrgyzstan to promote the sale of its ecologically clean products.

"We want to export potatoes, and fruits like cherry, peach and dried fruits too," he said, adding that currently the two countries are working on an agreement to export Kyrgyz meat products.

Agriculture is one of the most important spheres in the Kyrgyz national economy, contributing 14 percent of the nation's GDP last year and absorbing some 65 percent of its population. The government has included agricultural development in the National Strategy of Sustainable Development of Kyrgyzstan for 2013-2017. Endi