Guests attend the opening ceremony of a hybrid rice senior expert consultant project in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, Oct. 26, 2024. (Chinese Embassy in Brunei/Handout via Xinhua)

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- China and Brunei launched a hybrid rice senior expert consultant project in Brunei on Saturday, an important step to enhance cooperation in agriculture between the two countries.

The opening ceremony was held in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei. Experts from China's Longping High-tech Agriculture Company, Hunan Hybrid Rice Research Center and Hunan Agricultural University will hold a series of lectures on hybrid rice breeding, pest and disease management, soil improvement and rice fertilizability.

Hajah Tutiaty, permanent secretary of Brunei's Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, highlighted achievements of agricultural cooperation between the two countries, emphasizing the importance of promoting hybrid rice technology and agriculture in Brunei.

Xiao Jianguo, Chinese ambassador to Brunei, said that China and Brunei have harvested fruitful cooperation outcomes in the agricultural area.

The project will create more development opportunities and contribute significantly to the growth of the rice industry and food security in Brunei, and push agricultural cooperation to new heights, the ambassador said.

The Brunei government is committed to promoting economic diversification, particularly agricultural technology and food self-sufficiency.