On October 26, 2017, the opening ceremony of the joint seminars on Digital Agriculture and Rural Development, Poverty Reduction and Rural Revitalization Practices for B&R Countries was held at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. The event was organized by the Ministry of Commerce, hosted by AIBO, co-hosted by the Agricultural Information Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and CIAR, with support from the Institute of Food Science and Technology of CAAS. Chen Runyun，Vice Dean of AIBO and Jin Ke, Director of the Department of International Cooperation of CAAS attended the ceremony and delivered speeches. Representatives from the Embassy of Sierra Leone in China and delegates from Sierra Leone and Thailand also addressed the gathering.

The seminars, lasting for 11 days, have invited 44 officials, researchers, and business representatives from 14 countries in the agricultural sector. The objective of this initiative is to provide participants with insights into the current status and trends of China's digital agriculture and rural development, practices and experiences in poverty alleviation and rural revitalization, as well as advanced technological achievements and management experiences in areas such as grain loss reduction, quality and safety, nutritional preservation, modern storage and logistics, monitoring and early warning, processing and value addition, and comprehensive utilization. Over the next eleven days, participants from various countries will engage in in-depth learning and exchange, exploring the potential of digital agriculture development. Through international agricultural technology exchange and cooperation, they aim to contribute to the realization of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, promote rural development, poverty alleviation, and rural revitalization.