Zhang Jianguo (middle, front), administrator of SAFEA, meets with a delegation from the European Leader Association for Rural Development (ELARD) on Mar 16.

Zhang Jianguo, administrator of the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs (SAFEA), met with a delegation from the European Leader Association for Rural Development (ELARD) on March 16. The two sides exchanged views on agricultural development, rural construction, and talent exchange programs between China and Europe.

European Leader Association for Rural Development (ELARD) visits SAFEA on Mar 16.[photo/safea.gov.cn]

Zhang said that SAFEA values the opportunity to cooperate with the European Union. In January 2015, a European Council delegation visited SAFEA, and experts from Europe attended a Conference on International Exchange of Professionals held in Shenzhen in April 2015.

Rural development projects of ELARD have the same goals as China’s plans to develop its rural areas, and the two sides could enhance cooperation in that area. Before the meeting, the China Association for International Exchange of Personnel and ELARD discussed possible forms of cooperation in the future.