The cooperation between China and Barbados enjoys a solid foundation and broad prospects. With the promotion of the Belt and Road cooperation, China and Barbados will have closer cooperation in infrastructure construction, agriculture, energy, culture and other fields. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Barbados in 1977, the friendship between the two countries has continued to write moving stories, and a series of diversified projects of China-Pakistan cooperation are becoming a new benchmark to witness the friendship between the two countries.

In addition to the internationally acclaimed singer Rihanna, Barbados have another national hero in their hearts - the famous cricketer Garfield Sobers. Born in Bridgetown, Barbados, the player won numerous honors and his legend lives on in Barbados and throughout the Caribbean.

In the St. Michael's district of Barbados, there is a gymnasium named after Sobers, which has become one of the important multi-functional activity centers in Barbados, and its establishment and improvement have deep roots in China.

Sports monuments made in China

According to Neil Murrell, sports director of the Barbados National Sports Council, Garfield Sobers Stadium was built by the Chinese government in 1992 without compensation and renovated again in 2017. This large stadium with a capacity of nearly 5,000 people can host large-scale events and cultural performances, and has a large fitness center.

The stadium is a valuable property of Barbados. Murrell said that thanks to the help of Chinese friends, they have strongly promoted the development of sports in Barbados.

For Murrell, the significance of Garfield Sobers Stadium is no longer confined to Barbados. The stadium has become a landmark event complex for the entire Caribbean region.

Charles Griffiths, Minister of Youth, Sport and Community Empowerment of Barbados, gives an interview in Bridgetown, Barbados, on May 31, 2023

Outdoor exercise equipment such as tai chi kneaders are neatly arranged on the lawn outside Garfield Sobers Stadium. Charles Griffiths, Minister of Youth, Sport and Community Empowerment of Barbados, also spoke highly of the stadium: "This is not only one of the greatest achievements since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan in 1977, but also one of the largest and most important sports venues in our country."

I look forward to more cooperation with China in sports and culture. 'said Griffiths.

Chinese projects help food security

In the St. Thomas District of Barbados, a project that is closely related to the money and rice bags of the people of Barbados is under way. This is the construction site of the Chinese government-assisted Food Security Center in Barbados. Chinese workers are busy on the site, and the main frame of the building has taken shape amid the roar of machinery and equipment.

Yan Xiusheng, Chinese Ambassador to Barbados, said that in recent years, the bilateral practical cooperation between China and Barbados has been continuously expanding, and China has provided Barbados with various supports such as free aid, concessional loans and human resources training, which continue to benefit the people of Barbados. Chinese aid projects have played an important role in local economic and social life and become a symbol of friendship between the two peoples.

An interior view of Garfield Sobers Stadium in St. Michael's, Barbados, May 31, 2023

According to Wu Sunqing, project manager of the Food Security Center of the Overseas Department of Shanghai Construction Engineering Group, the project covers a total area of 54,000 square meters and consists of 13 buildings, including fruit processing plants, chocolate processing plants, vegetable processing plants, cotton processing plants, meat sorting processing plants, testing laboratories and conference centers.

Barbados relies heavily on imports of food and vegetables, and relevant agricultural production and processing technologies need to be upgraded. The Food Security Center is of great significance to ensuring national food security, improving the level of agricultural development and improving the quality of life of residents.

The CFS project is the first Chinese assistance package in Barbados in more than 20 years. As part of the long-term agricultural development plan of Barbados, the implementation of this project is also a landmark event in the development of the food field of China's aid to Pakistan. Wu Sunqing said that after the completion of the project, it will become a new benchmark of China-Pakistan friendship.

Chinese friends witness people-to-people exchanges

For more than 40 years, a Chinese name, Yin Yang, has been circulating among sports fans in Barbados.

He is a highly sought-after table tennis coach in Barbados and the excellent skills he has taught have been passed on to Barbados players. Dale Ladd, former president of the Barbados Table Tennis Association.

Who is Yin and Yang? Through the unremitting efforts of Li Renyan, the Chinese director of the Confucius Institute at the University of the West Indies in Cavhill, Barbados, and others, he was finally identified as Yang Ying, the first Chinese table tennis coach in Barbados. In 1979, Yang moved across the ocean and was invited to coach the Barbados national team. It makes me happy that the people of Barbados remember me after all these years. "Said Yang, now 91 years old.

The legend started by Yang Ying continues, more than 40 years later, the second foreign aid coach Wu Cong set foot on the soil of Barbados. His arrival led to a rapid improvement in the results of the players, in the Central American and Caribbean Games qualifiers and Caribbean Championships, Wu Cong helped the Brazilian national team to win the third place in the men's team.

In April 2015, the Confucius Institute was established at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus in Barbados. Since its establishment, the Confucius Institute has developed Chinese language teaching activities in Pakistan, and made great efforts to promote the exchange and promotion of traditional Chinese culture and sports such as table tennis in the local area, which are well received by the local people.

Li Renyan said: As the only Confucius Institute in Barbados, our institute shoulders the responsibility of Chinese language teaching and cultural dissemination. We offer Chinese courses in two primary schools, one middle school and three colleges and universities, with about 1,000 students each year.

From achieving sports monuments to contributing to food security, from infrastructure construction to promoting people-to-people exchanges, the diversified projects of China-Pakistan cooperation have stood through decades of ups and downs. The friendship will last forever, the legend will continue, and the people of China and Pakistan will surely write a new and beautiful chapter in the development of bilateral cooperation.Editor/Ma Xue