South Korea dangles tailored support ahead of its first Africa summit

Rice may not be a staple in most of East Africa, but it is one of the most consumed cereals in the region. Koreans know it, so, over the past couple of years, they have introduced a technology for higher-yielding seed, known as K-Rice. In East Africa, Kenya and Uganda have been pilot sites, although the K-Rice Belt is wider on the continent, including Senegal, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Ghana and Cameroon. The project helped produce 2,040 tonnes of seed in 2023. And Kenya and Uganda expect to produce about 2,300 tonnes of seed on average by 2027, the presumptive time the four-year project is to run, Korean officials say. Most of these African countries will be able to produce own seed, carry out mass production of this type of rice and address food security. Read: Kenya, Angola top US Africa infrastructure craze “Even if the technology is small, as long as it is rooted in the local people, it will have a significant impact. When Korea was in poverty, we received a lot of help ...