Journal Article

Assessing the Effects of China's Rice Technology Transfer to Africa: Economic and Environmental Impacts on Rice Production

Zhang, Deshuo, Stephen, Olasehinde Toba, Lin, Qingning, Mao, Shiping

2025

Overview

Ensuring food security while enhancing agricultural sustainability remains a critical challenge in Africa. China's rice technology transfer has emerged as an important external driver to address this issue, yet its comprehensive impacts remain underexplored. This study uses panel data from 40 African countries (2000–2022) and utilizes Agricultural Technology Demonstration Centers (ATDC) as a quasi‐natural experiment to evaluate the economic and environmental impacts of China's rice technology transfer, as well as its role in promoting production convergence across African nations. Results reveal the following: (1) China's rice technology transfer significantly increased total rice output, cultivation area, and yield, while effectively reducing methane emission intensity, highlighting its dual benefits of economic and environmental outcomes; (2) The impact of China's rice technology transfer is more pronounced in African countries with higher levels of agricultural technology and governance performance; (3) The analysis also identified a natural convergence trend in African rice production, with China's technology transfer accelerating this process, suggesting its potential as a tool to foster regional integration and reduce inequalities. These findings provide valuable insights and practical guidance for the sustainable development of China‐Africa agricultural cooperation. The graphical illustrates the interconnected challenges of food security, population growth, and environmental sustainability in Africa. Rapid population growth and urbanization have triggered profound dietary transitions, with rice emerging as a key staple in many African countries. This shift has sharply increased rice demand, driving the expansion of cultivation areas. However, while larger planting areas contribute to food security, they also generate complex trade‐offs — such as higher methane emissions and potential land‐use pressures. Climate change further exacerbates these challenges by intensifying extreme weather events, threatening agricultural productivity. The figure underscores the dual nature of Africa's rice sector: it is both a solution to hunger and a contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. It highlights the urgent need for technological innovation and sustainable agricultural practices, such as improved seed varieties, optimized water management, and international technology transfer. Together, these interventions are crucial to balancing productivity gains with environmental sustainability and ensuring long‐term food security in Africa.

• Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc,Wiley
• Subject: African food security / Agricultural production / Agricultural technology / Climate change / Convergence / Cooperation / Crop production / Cultivation / Economics / Emissions / Environmental impact / Food security / Foreign aid / Grain cultivation / Hunger / Hypotheses / Innovations / International organizations / Literature reviews / Methane / methane emission / Productivity / quasi‐natural experiment / Rice / Self sufficiency / Sustainability / Sustainable agriculture / Sustainable development / Technology transfer