徐步大使在“东盟稻米科技大使奖”颁奖仪式上的致辞

Remarks by Ambassador Xu Bu at ASEAN Rice Science and Technology Ambassadors Awarding Ceremony

（2017年8月7日，菲律宾 奎松市）

(7 August 2017, Quezon City, the Philippines)

国际稻米研究所主任莫雷尔先生

Dr. Matthew Morel, Director-General of International Rice Research Institute,

菲律宾农业部副部长赛格弗里多·赛拉诺先生

Dr. Segfredo Serrano, Undersecretary of Policy and Planning, Department of Agriculture,

菲律宾东盟农业与林业事务高官莱利·帕内斯先生

Mr. Lerey Panes, Assistant Secretary, Philippine SOM leader for ASEAN Ministers on Agriculture and Forestry (AMAF),

各位朋友，女士们、先生们：

Friends, Ladies and Gentlemen,

很高兴出席今天的“东盟稻米科技大使奖”颁奖仪式。我首先谨向获此殊荣的各位稻米种植者和技术研发者表示热烈祝贺。微博@高斋翻硕 公众号:高斋翻译学

It is my great pleasure to attend ASEAN Rice Science and Technology Ambassadors Awarding Ceremony. To begin with, I wish to extend warmest congratulations to all award winners from ASEAN member states.

中国春秋时期政治家、经济学家管仲说，“仓廪实而知礼节，衣食足而知荣辱”。他在2500多年前就告诉我们，粮食生产对社会的进步和人民的幸福有多么重要。

Guan Zhong, a well-known politician and economist in China’s Spring and Autumn period, said that only when there is adequate food in stock, one will know what decorums are and only when one is well fed and clad, he will know what honors truly lie. His words show how important food production was for the civilization and well-being of people even as early as 2500 years ago.

稻米是亚洲人民的主要食粮，是关系国计民生的大事。毫不夸张地说，各位获奖者所从事的工作是造福社会、国家和人类的伟大事业。这个奖项是对你们辛勤劳动和杰出贡献的褒奖，体现了东盟对农业发展的重视和期待。

As the main food for people in Asia, rice is of vital importance to national development and peoples’ livelihood. It’s fair to say that the work of all award winners here is a great undertaking which benefits the society, the nation and human being as a whole. This Award is a recognition of your work and contribution, and also a testament to the importance and expectations ASEAN holds for agricultural development.

中国是世界上水稻栽培历史最悠久的国家。早在7千年前，居住在长江下游的华夏先民就已掌握水稻种植技术并把稻米作为主要食粮。目前，中国水稻播种面积约3100万公顷，居世界第二位，约占世界总种植面积的20%，水稻总产量近2亿吨，居世界第一。

China is a country with longest history of rice farming. As early as 7,000 years back, Chinese ancestors living along the lower reach of the Yangtze River mastered the technique and chose rice as their main food. Currently, China’s rice farming land stretches across 31 million hectares which ranks the second in the world and accounts for 20% of the world’s total. The total rice yield tops the world by 200 million tons.

稻米生产占中国粮食生产的近四成，居中国三大主粮之首，中国60%以上的人口以大米为主食。过去几十年，中国政府大力发展稻米生产和科技创新，用不足世界10%的耕地养活了世界22%的人口，为中国经济社会发展提供了良好条件，为世界粮食安全保障提供了科技和物质支撑。这是一个了不起的成就。微博@高斋翻硕 公众号:高斋翻译学堂

As the top among the three main grain food in China, rice accounts for nearly 40% of the whole food production. More than 60% of Chinese people rely on rice as daily food. Over the past several decades, the Chinese Government has invested heavily on rice production and technical innovation and successfully fed 22% of the world’s population with less than 10% of arable land in the world. This is an achievement of no comparison. It has helped to lay a solid foundation for economic and social development in China and made a great contribution to food security of the world.

与中国一样，东盟国家也是世界上主要稻米生产国。东盟共有1.44亿户水稻生产农户，东南亚地区各国大米生产量占全球大米总产量的25%。越南和泰国是主要大米出口国，占全球大米出口量的近一半。菲律宾是东南亚生产稻米的重要国家，是亚洲水稻生产水平提升最大的国家。稻米已成为东盟国家保民生、稳民心的主要农产品。

Like china, ASEAN member states are also major rice producers and there are 144 million rice farming households in ASEAN. The rice yield in Southeast Asia accounts for a quarter of the world’s total. Vietnam and Thailand, as major rice exporting countries, see their exports taking up almost half of the world’s total. The Philippines, as a major rice producer in Southeast Asia, has enjoyed biggest progress in farming technology in Asia. Rice has undoubtedly become a crucial agricultural product that sustains people’s lives and ensures social stability.

中国和东盟国家陆海相连，在水稻种植和农业方面的合作与交流源远流长。近年来，中国在东盟国家成功推广杂交水稻技术，双方在稻米育种、病虫害防治等相关领域开展了深入有效的合作，为实现稻米增产增收、消除贫困、提高人民生活水平发挥了重要作用。我很高兴地得知，有4位中国农科院和武汉大学的中方专家专程前来参加此次活动，感谢他们长期以来为推动中国与东盟稻米合作所做的贡献。

China and ASEAN are joined by land and sea with long history of cooperation in rice farming and agricultural sector. In recent years, China has enhanced technology sharing in hybrid rice in ASEAN member states and carried out effective and fruitful cooperation with ASEAN in rice breeding and insects control etc. Cooperation between us played a conducive role in increasing rice yield, alleviating poverty and improving people’s living standards. I’m happy to know that four Chinese experts from Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Wuhan University are attending this activity. I wish to express my sincere appreciation to them for their long term contribution to the rice farming cooperation between China and ASEAN.

同时，中国和东盟国家在实现粮食安全方面也面临一些挑战和困难。中国和东盟国家都在推进城镇化和工业化，可用耕地面积逐年减少。自然灾害、供需失衡、全球极端气候增多等因素也对中国和东盟国家的稻米生产和粮食安全构成挑战。微博@高斋翻硕 公众号:高斋翻译学堂

At the same time, China and ASEAN member states also face common challenges and difficulties. With the advance of urbanization and industrialization, China and ASEAN member states have witnessed the decreasing of available arable land by each passing year. Furthermore, natural disasters, imbalance between food supply and demand, the increase of extreme weather around the globe pose challenges to rice farming and food security in China and ASEAN member states.

为此，中国和东盟应通过更加密切的合作，强化粮食生产能力建设、优化粮食市场、完善粮食贸易、分享粮食科技发展成果，共同应对粮食安全问题，实现互利共赢。希望双方以“东盟水稻科技大使奖”系列活动为契机，进一步展开交流、加强合作。

It is therefore incumbent for China and ASEAN to work even more closely for mutual benefits and win-win outcome by strengthening food production capacity building, optimizing food market, improving food trade and sharing food technology and research. Activities like ASEAN Rice Science and Technology Ambassadors Award offer us a good opportunity to further exchange and cooperation.

中国和东盟自1991年建立对话关系，迄今已走过26个年头。双方关系已从“成长期”步入起点更高、内涵更广、合作更深的“成熟期”。我们相信，在中国和东盟各国共同努力下，在“一带一路”倡议引领下，中国和东盟各国各领域务实合作将进一步走实、走深，为建设更为紧密的中国—东盟命运共同体不断注入新动力。微博@高斋翻硕 公众号:高斋翻译学堂

It has been 26 years since the dialogue relations between China and ASEAN were established in 1991. Our bilateral ties are now moving from a period of fast growth to a period of maturity with higher quality at higher level. We firmly believe that with the concerted efforts by China and ASEAN member states and the impetus provided by the Belt and Road Initiative, the multidimensional cooperation between China and ASEAN will go deeper and broader, injecting new vitality to the building of an even closer China-ASEAN community of shared future.

谢谢。

Thank you.