By LI Linxu & GENG Yuguo

Aiming to achieve rural revitalization, Liaocheng, a prefectural-level city situated in the west of Shandong province on the north bank of the Yellow River, is assembling the best minds around the world and drawing fully on their expertise.

At present, there are more than 100 foreign experts from 30 countries actively involved in various sectors in the city.

Anush Balian, a Ukrainian expert, is one of them. In 2020, she led an agricultural experts team to Liaocheng to carry out exchanges and cooperation on the invitation of a local company, Shandong Guanyou Agriculture Co., Ltd. (referred as Guanyou).

She and her teammates shared research findings on prospective varieties of fruits and rootstocks, offered highly efficient fruit cultivation techniques, provided corresponding technical support, and gave advice on establishing a modern orchard ecosystem.

Foreign experts exchange techniques with Chinese staff in Guanyou.(PHOTO: Ding Xiaojie/Guanyou)

Under her guidance, Guanyou has gradually grown into a modern agricultural enterprise, with a marked improvement of quality, and an extended industrial chain.

In addition, Guanyou has also built a large number of ecological orchards, particularly crisp pears, along the old course of the Yellow River, forming a unique Yellow River agro-ecological landscape.

"I'm honored to be appointed as a sci-tech commissioner by Liaocheng," said Balian, hoping to carry out an all-round cooperation in the agriculture sector with local companies.

As a sci-tech commissioner, Balian has played an important role in providing technical guidance, advice and training for local companies and staff.

Advanced equipment that Ukrainian experts have brought to Liaocheng includes a netting that can protect crops from pests, frost, and hailstorms, which has filled the domestic technological gap.

Thanks to the new equipment, new crop varieties, and new technologies, productivity is boosted, with more cost saving and greater profit margin. Meanwhile, both economic and ecological benefits are gained in the ecological orchards.

"Now, I can earn money while working near home," said Fan Jinfang, an employee of Guanyou.

The orchards have provided more than 200 job opportunities for local residents, with an average income growth per capita of more than 30,000 RMB.

To further promote sci-tech innovation and entrepreneurship, the city vowed to create a favorable working and living environment for foreign experts, said an official from Liaocheng.

Source: Liaocheng Science and Technology Bureau