Tuesday 26 May 2020

World Bank approves €136m loan to support ‘climate-smart’ agriculture in China’s Hubei Province

The World Bank has approved a €136 million (£121m) loan to support environmentally sustainable and climate-smart agriculture in Hubei Province, China.

It says the Hubei Smart and Sustainable Agriculture Project aims to improve agricultural food quality and address the impacts of climate change.

The project will finance efforts to improve livestock waste management and nutrient management, reduce the over-use of synthetic fertilisers and improve water management in rice production.

It will also focus on soil and water resources management and pilot approaches to reduce marine plastics pollution.

Martin Raiser, World Bank Country Director for China, said: "It will be the first project to combine interventions on quality and safety of agricultural production with sustainable and climate-smart agriculture practices in an integrated way.

"This project is expected to yield significant climate co-benefits and contribute to the achievement of China’s agriculture-related climate change commitments, including under the Paris Agreement."