Tea-picking workers harvest tea leaves at a tea garden in Maoping Town of Zigui County, central China's Hubei Province, April 1, 2023. (Photo by Wang Huifu/Xinhua)

The World Bank has approved a loan of 345 million U.S. dollars to enhance the development of green agriculture and rural areas in central China's Hubei and Hunan provinces, the bank's Beijing office said Saturday.

The loan, in conjunction with government funds, will be used to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from crop and livestock farming, increase soil carbon sinks, improve biodiversity protection and restoration of agricultural ecosystems, and support local governments to integrate environmental and decarbonization goals in rural revitalization plans and investment projects, according to the office.

Work will be done in multiple fields, such as providing farmers and members of cooperatives with training and agricultural extension services, encouraging farmers and food processors to adopt climate-intelligent agricultural technologies and good agricultural practices, optimizing rural sewage and garbage treatment services, and introducing standards and methods related to green agriculture and rural development.

"This program will introduce targets and innovative practices for greening agriculture while enhancing the resilience of the government's rural revitalization program in Hubei and Hunan, generating lessons that can be applied across the country," said Mara Warwick, World Bank Country Director for China, Mongolia and Korea.

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