， and irrigation among others.

ACCRA， March 6 (Xinhua) -- Ghana marked its 60th Independence Day at the Independence Square in the capital Accra on Monday， with a host of foreign dignitaries showing up to celebrate its position as the first Sub-Saharan country to attain independence.


At the Independence Square， troops drawn from the various security services as well as a unit of schoolchildren took part in a national anniversary parade to mark the day， which was also graced by thousands of Ghanaians and several African Heads of State including Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe.


The display of ground and air military hardware， policing and fire service apparatus added color to the national parade. Similar rallies were held throughout the country to mark the anniversary.


Addressing the parade， Ghana's President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo said after sixty years， Ghanaians have run out of excuses， and it is time to set Ghana to rights and get the country to where it should be.


He said the challenge before the citizenry is to build the economy and generate a prosperous， progressive and dignified life for the mass of the people.


"We have a bright future， and we must mobilize all our resources and all our strengths， here and in the Ghanaian Diaspora， to get to that promised land of prosperity faster，" he said.


Ghana， formed from the British colonies of Gold Coast and Togoland， gained independence from British rule on March 6， 1957.




by Ronald Ssekandi， Yuan Qing


KAMPALA， March 12 (Xinhua) -- The rainy season has set off and in the swampy villages of Budaka district in eastern Uganda， Joyce Nabejja tills her hybrid rice field in anticipation of greater yields.


Nabejja is one of the thousands of Ugandan small scale farmers benefiting from an agriculture project that is run by the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)， the Ugandan government and China.


The two million U.S. dollar project， which is in its second phase， is run under the FAO South-South Cooperation program. It was set up to help developing countries share knowledge and expertise so that all can benefit from innovations and good practices that have been tried and tested in countries facing similar conditions and challenges.


This program is part of China's move to channel its aid to Africa and other parts of the world through multilateral organizations like the UN.


In September 2015， China made major pledges in foreign aid， including two billion U.S. dollars to support South-South cooperation and debt relief for least-developed countries.


Also among the pledges is a 10-year， one billion dollars peace and development fund to support the UN.


These pledges have started exerting a positive influence on Africa， one of the major beneficiaries.


Farmers in Uganda are being trained by Chinese agronomists on better farming skills. The scientists have introduced Chinese hybrid rice Foxtail millet， apple farming， and irrigation among others.


From rice field to the classroom， China is also helping to boost Africa's education sector to promote social development.