The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs recently announced the "Decision on the Commendation of the Shennong Chinese Agricultural Science and Technology Award for 2022-2023." The "Jiangsu University Water-Saving Irrigation Equipment Innovation Team," led by Researcher Yuan Shouqi, was honored with the Excellent Innovation Team Award of the Shennong Chinese Agricultural Science and Technology Award for 2022-2023. A total of 25 teams received the Excellent Innovation Team Award this time, marking the first occasion that our university has received this honor since the award was established.

The Shennong Chinese Agricultural Science and Technology Award, approved by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Science and Technology, is a comprehensive science and technology award for the national agricultural industry. It mainly rewards collectives and individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the progress and innovation of agricultural science and technology in China. The award aims to further motivate the enthusiasm and creativity of agricultural science and technology workers, promote agricultural scientific and technological innovation, enhance the technical level of the industry, and contribute to the development of China's agriculture and rural economy, as well as the construction of the socialist new countryside.

The Jiangsu University Water-Saving Irrigation Equipment Innovation Team focuses on scientific research and talent training in the field of water-saving irrigation equipment. The team consists of 18 main members, with team leader Yuan Shouqi being a foreign academician of the Russian Academy of Engineering, a recipient of the National Outstanding Youth Fund, the National Ten Thousand Talent Program, the National Candidate of the New Century Talents Project, and the He Liang He Li Science and Technology Innovation Award. The team's discipline, Fluid Machinery and Engineering, is a national key discipline, housing the National Research Center of Pumps, the National Center for International Research on Energy Saving Technology of Fluid Engineering Equipment, and the Advanced Technology for High-end Fluid Machinery Overseas Expertise Introduction Center for Discipline Innovation, among other national platforms.

Guided by the national strategic demand for agricultural water saving, the team has developed three main research directions with distinctive features: water-saving irrigation equipment, pumping station engineering, and smart irrigation. They have developed over 50 types of new water-saving irrigation equipment and series of high-performance pumps and devices. The research achievements have been widely adopted by the national water-saving irrigation industry and extensively applied in major national projects such as the Northeast Water-Saving and Grain-Increasing Project and the Yangtze River to Huaihe River Project. These achievements have enhanced the technical level of China's water-saving irrigation equipment, led the industry's development, and played a significant role in drought resistance, disaster reduction, energy saving, emission reduction, and sustainable water resource utilization. The team has won three National Science and Technology Progress Second Prizes in 2007, 2014, and 2015, as well as the First Prize of the Shennong Chinese Agricultural Science and Technology Award in 2021, among other provincial and ministerial awards.