Cuban Deputy Minister of Agriculture Ydael Perez Brito speaks at the launching ceremony of the fifth phase of the cooperation project on developing rice production (Photo: VNA)Havana (VNA) – Thefifth phase of the Vietnam-Cuba cooperation project on developing riceproduction kicked off in Havana on May 29.
Launched in 1999, the project has helped improveCuba’s research capacity, transfer Vietnam’s technical advances in riceproduction to the country, apply the advances in non-specialised rice farmingareas, build rice seed production and supply models, and develop productionmodels applying technical advances in specialised farming zones.
It has become one of the symbols of Vietnam-Cubacooperation in the new period.
By the end of the fourth phase in December 2015,the project had been carried out in 12 out of 15 provinces and cities of Cuba.It had developed 54,000ha of rice production models, up 163 percent from theinitial plan, with an average productivity of 4.36 tonnes per ha, compared to2.5 tonnes per ha before the project implementation.
The fifth phase of the project will continue inthe 12 provinces and cities, and is scheduled to last until 2023. It is set tocultivate 200,000ha of rice with an average productivity of 6 tonnes per ha. Itlooks to satisfy 86 percent of the rice demand in Cuba.
At the launching ceremony, Cuban Deputy Ministerof Agriculture Ydael Perez Brito reviewed the local rice production developmentwhich has recorded a turning point in productivity since the cooperationproject with Vietnam was implemented.
He appreciated Vietnam’s assistance, which isnot only in terms of machinery and seeds but also techniques transferred byenthusiastic experts.
Vietnamese Ambassador to Cuba Nguyen Trung Thanhaffirmed that the project is a continuation of the two nations’ specialsolidarity, and it demonstrates the enormous potential of bilateralcooperation.–VNA
VNA
