A handover ceremony for media equipment donated by China Media Group (CMG) to the Antigua and Barbuda Broadcasting Services (ABS) was held on Friday at the Prime Minister's Office in the capital St. John's.
In order to promote media exchanges and cooperation between China and Antigua and Barbuda, CMG donated digital mixers, cameras and other equipment to the ABS.
Antigua and Barbuda's Prime Minister Gaston Browne, Foreign Minister Everly Paul Chet Greene, Minister of Information Melford Walter Fitzgerald Nicholas, and Chinese Ambassador to Antigua and Barbuda Zhang Yanling attended the handover ceremony.
At the ceremony, Prime Minister Browne and Ambassador Zhang exchanged a donation agreement, signed by the Antigua and Barbuda government and CMG, and expressed his gratitude to China and CMG.
"In fact, this gift arose from discussions that we held in China back in January of this year. And it was Mr. (Garfield) Burford, the director at ABS, that would have made this request. We thought that the timeline was extremely short, but they had indicated to us that they will do their best to help us to build capacity for the SIDS conference. We are extremely grateful," Browne said.
The 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) will be held in Antigua and Barbuda next week.
Foreign Minister Greene said that the media equipment would enable Antigua and Barbuda to make substantial progress in media technology and greatly facilitate cultural exchanges between the two countries.
Nicholas said that he warmly welcomes colleagues from CMG and other Chinese media to come to Antigua and Barbuda for interviews and reporting.
ABS was established in 2000 and owns television stations, radio stations and new media platforms.
Handover ceremony for CMG-donated media equipment held in Antigua and Barbuda
Chinese Premier Li Qiang emphasized advancing agricultural modernization and ensuring food security when making investigation in northeast China's Heilongjiang and Jilin provinces from Monday to Wednesday.
In Heilongjiang Province, Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, visited a state farm and observed the growth of soybean, corn, and rice crops. He stressed that autumn grain accounts for the bulk of annual output, calling for stepped-up farmland management and policy support to ensure grain harvest.
Visiting an agricultural science park and a rice research institute, Li asked about seed breeding innovation and black soil conservation, highlighting the importance of science and technology in pursuing higher yields and calling for further efforts in seed breeding, advanced machinery, and smart farming.
At a major water conservancy project, Li reviewed construction progress, urging faster completion to improve flood control, irrigation, and ecological benefits while supporting stable, high-yield harvests.
In Jilin Province, Li visited an agricultural cooperative and learned about its operations. He called for developing diverse forms of appropriately scaled agricultural operations and improving services for agriculture to help smallholders connect with modern agriculture.
At a grain processing plant, Li inspected a corn oil production line and called for boosting intensive processing of agricultural products to extend industrial chains and raise value.
Li also visited the Chagan Lake and learned about the ecological fisheries. He called for actively developing modern eco-aquaculture, promoting integrated development of the farming, forestry, livestock, and fishing industries as well as the development of eco-tourism.
Chinese premier stresses agricultural modernization, food security
