China launches fund for natural disaster relief of agricultural sector
China has assigned 595 million RMB (77. 7 million EUR) to combat negative effects of natural disasters upon agriculture. According to Xinhua, this fund will target a variety of challenges countrywide including droughts, blizzards, floods, landslides as well as pests and plant disease. The move likely attempts to reduce the negative consequences of climate change because “as the average global temperature increases, we can expect the frequency, intensity and distribution of these extreme weather-related events to change”.
With 1.4 billion mouths to feed, China’s determination for protecting its agricultural sector is unsurprising. The country has long emphasised its zeal for ‘food self-sufficiency’, thereby, depending on domestic food products rather than imports. In fact, China recently announced plans to rely entirely on its own crops by 2035. However, the climate change clearly presents a major hurdle to this goal. Therefore, the country may be forced to change its agricultural practices to adapt to constraints brought on by climate change, such as by growing drought-resistant crops.
