IN BRIEF (Page 2)

Society

Ties that bind two countries

The China-Africa Friendship Association has been launched in Kampala, Uganda.

Speaking on the occasion on Feb 25, the Ugandan Vice-President Edward Kiwanuka Ssekandi said the association would play a big role in bolstering the 50-year old relationship between Uganda and China. He urged Ugandan business people, academicians and cultural entities to take advantage of the new alliance.

Ssekandi said more than 7,000 Chinese live in Kampala alone, running more than 100 businesses, while a significant number of Ugandans live and trade in various cities of China.

The Chinese ambassador to Uganda Zhao Yali assured Ugandans of continued socio-economic and cultural relations between the two countries and said China holds Uganda in high esteem for its contribution to peace and security on the continent.

Economy

More wine, fruit exports to China

The Western Cape provincial government, expecting significant job losses following recent farm worker strikes and unrest, is trying to promote the province's wine and fruit in new markets such as China, Premier Helen Zille said.

South African wine exports to China have grown 50 percent annually for the past three years, Zille said. Although South Africa supplies only 3 percent of the Chinese wine market, China has now become one of South Africa's top 10 export destinations, she said.

Shandong province in China and the Western Cape are sister provinces, both belonging to the Regional Leader Forum grouping. The Western Cape also has bilateral agreements with Shandong on agriculture, trade and investment, economic cooperation, as well as governmental co-operation.

Environment

Sea level continues to rise

China's sea level hit a record high last year due to global warming and land subsidence, threatening millions of coastal residents, a government report says. The report, published by the State Oceanic Administration on Feb 26, said that last year, the sea level rose 122 millimeters more than the average level from 1975 to 1993, about 53 mm higher than it was in 2011.

"The rising temperatures from increasing greenhouse gas emissions and land subsidence nationwide led to the high seas," said Liu Kexiu of the National Marine Data and Information Service.

Last year, average air temperatures in coastal areas rose 0.4 degree above the average from 1975 to 1993, and sea temperatures rose 0.3 degree, the report said.

Scientists estimate the situation will be worse in 2050, when sea levels may rise up to 200 mm and submerge about 87,000 square kilometers of coast, the report warns.

Health

Partnership to track counterfeits

Internet search giant Baidu has teamed up with China's top drug authority to help crack down on counterfeit drugs and illegal websites trading shoddy products.

The alliance means Chinese netizens, of whom there are 560 million on the mainland, will have access via Baidu to basic information, authorized by the State Food and Drug Administration, about more than 180,000 kinds of drugs including the producer, description and dosage, said Zhu Guang, vice-president of Baidu.

Baidu will identify online drug stores approved by the administration in related search results, to help consumers make the right choices, he said.

Organ donor system expanded

The pilot organ donation network will be extended across China by the end of the year, a top health official said.

Zhao Baige, executive vice-president of the Red Cross Society of China, said on Feb 25 that it would urge all provinces and regions not covered by the program to add it by the end of the year.

Led by the Ministry of Health and the society, the organ donation program aims to establish viable systems to share the information of dead organ donors and people waiting for donations, and to match donations between the two across the country.

The pilot program began in March 2010, and 19 provinces have already adopted it.

Education

System to reduce dropouts

A planned nationwide education accountability system aims to reduce the number of students who drop out because of closures and rural-school mergers, the Ministry of Education said.

Du Kewei, a ministry official in charge of basic education, said local governments have been asked to work out plans for their rural elementary and junior high schools for the next three years.

The plans must be submitted to central education authorities by the end of June. No closures or mergers will be allowed until the new local plans come out, Du said at a news conference.

China Daily

(China Daily 03/01/2013 page2)