On November 29, the " Training Courseon Fisheries and Aquatic Product Processing " program undertaken by FFRC was launched at the Ministry of Marine Resources of Eritrea. Counselor Wang Lipei, Economic and Commercial Office of the Chinese Embassy in Eritrea, Mr. John Yohannes, Director General of the Research and Human Resources Departmen, MMR and Dr. Jing Xiaojun,representative of FFRC attended the opening ceremony and made a speech.

       At the ceremony, Counselor Wang Lipei pointed out that in recent years, under the guidance of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum, China and Eritrea have cooperated closely, and traditional friendship has been continuously consolidated. The two sides have a good cooperation situation in major infrastructure projects and capacity building, and there is huge space for further development. He said that capacity-building is an important content of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum action plan and an important aspect of bilateral cooperation. This year, China will host 9 human resources training programs in Eritrea, among which the fishery program is one of the key contents. Eritrea has a coastline that ranks among the highest in the world and has great potential for development. It is hoped that the FFRC will take this program as an opportunity to establish a Sino-Eritrea fishery cooperation platform while spreading China's fishery technology, and help the joint commercial development project to proceed smoothly.

       John Yohannes gave a brief introduction to the development of the fishery industry in Eritrea. He said that the development is facing huge challenges, and in the future, international cooperation will be strengthened to expand cooperation space. He hopes to continue to receive strong support from the Chinese government and strengthen scientific and technological cooperation with FFRC, so as to provide intellectual support for the sustainable development of the Eritrea fishery.

       Dr. Jingjun Jun introduced the development of FFRC, especially the main achievements in scientific and technological innovation and international cooperation. He said that Eritrea is an important partner of China's "Belt and Road" initiative, and FFRC will actively promote scientific and technological cooperation and cultural exchanges between the two sides in the fishery field under the initiative of the leaders of the two countries. At the same time, FFRC will continuously undertake capacity-building programs in the fishery fields from 2020 to 2021, providing a full range of technical support for Eritrea.

       This program is the second overseas training undertaken by FFRC in 2019. It lasted 21 days and attracted 72 participants from Eritrean fisheries administration, extension, research institutions and companies.

      In order to successfully complete the implementation of this course, FFRC closely focused on the program theme and the actual needs of Eritrea, and selected 9 experts for support, focusing on the development of the fishery industry, the protection of fishery resources and development, breeding and promotion of important varieties, processing and market development, fish disease control and fish nutrition.FFRC hopes to use this training program as a "catalyst" for Sino-Eritrea fisheries cooperation, to help Blue Economy Growth in Eritrea, to assist in providing more local fishery employment and improving the income level of fishermen. FFRC also hope to make its due contribution to the United Nations Millennium Development Goals"eliminate hunger, eradicate poverty ".