On April 28, Prime Minister James Marape of Papua New Guinea (PNG) led a ministerial delegation to Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.
The highlight of the visit was a meeting with Professor Lin Zhanxi, "the father of Juncao" technology, a senior researcher at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University (FAFU) whose innovation has been transforming lives in PNG for nearly three decades.
Prime Minister James Marape of Papua New Guinea meets with Professor Lin Zhanxi.
"In 1997, you introduced Juncao technology to my country, in the wonderful province of Eastern Highlands. Almost 30 years later, it is still flourishing and serving my people very well," Marape told the 82-year-old inventor. Reflecting in 2026, he added, "Your foresight in 1997 was spot on."
The collaboration was formalized in May 2000, when Fujian Province in China established a sister-province relationship with Eastern Highlands Province (EHP) and designated Juncao and upland rice technologies as a provincial aid project. FAFU dispatched an expert team, led by Professor Lin, to implement the project.
With strong support from the EHP government and local communities, the team overcame numerous challenges to ensure the successful introduction of these technologies, effectively ending the province's long-standing absence of mushroom and rice production. EHP also held several major ceremonies to commemorate these achievements.
Prime Minister James Marape attends a conference with delegates from Guangdong Province.
Professor Lin elaborated on how technology has evolved. "After 30 years of collaborative efforts, Juncao technology has paved a new path for poverty reduction. Farmers who have adopted Juncao technology have seen their incomes double or even triple, benefiting tens of thousands." He also pointed out that the technology has pioneered new approaches to food security, including perennial upland rice cultivation and other sustainable cultivation methods.
Their joint efforts have set three world records: the highest yield of giant Juncao grass, the highest per-unit yield of upland rice, and the highest number of consecutive harvests of upland rice from a single sowing.
In 2022, during Prime Minister Marape's visit to China, the two governments signed an exchange of letters to continue the assistance project. By March 2025, a total of 41 local training courses on Juncao and upland rice technologies had been held, training 3,277 participants.
The technologies have been promoted in 20 districts across 10 provinces of PNG, benefiting tens of thousands of residents. Bound by Juncao and upland rice, China and Papua New Guinea have enjoyed 25 years of close and frequent exchanges, co-writing a remarkable chapter of shared destiny and mutual progress.
Marape stressed the urgency of such innovations. "By 2050, the world population will grow past 10 billion," he warned. "Our population is growing big, and land remains small." He sees vast potential for PNG, which has 10 million people, 462,840 square kilometers of land, and year-round rain and sunshine.
"We could partner with Chinese technology—Juncao technology is already present in our country. We aim to embrace this and expand it for food production, to supply and support PNG, as well as to sell the surplus to our Asian marketplace: Indonesia, the Philippines, China, and more," he added.
Professor Lin also announced that, in collaboration with Shenzhen Energy Group, Juncao technology has expanded from agriculture into energy development.
The cultivation techniques of Juncao and upland rice are promoted to the local prison farms in PNG (Photo: FAFU).
He is already planning two new demonstration villages in PNG: a Juncao mushroom village for poverty alleviation in Golu-Kamaishi, and an upland rice production village in Kefamo. On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of Juncao's invention, he plans to host a global industry conference, "to provide developing countries with Chinese wisdom and solutions in support of the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals."
Marape praised Lin's lifelong dedication, "Professor Lin, you, in your entire life, have been committed to finding appropriate technology to create food for humanity."
The April 28 visit also included talks with Chinese companies in the energy and agriculture sectors, further strengthening practical cooperation between PNG and China.
As Marape concluded, "With your help, PNG could become a constant supply of food to our region—and that will forever secure our friendship in the Pacific, in the Asia-Pacific."
Reporter: Guo Zedong
Video, cover & photo: Guo Hongda
