On the afternoon of May 26, President Xi Jinping held talks with Congolese President Tshisekedi who came to China on a state visit. The two heads of state announced that the strategic partnership of win-win cooperation between the two countries will be upgraded to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.
Just the day before, the Organization of African Unity, the predecessor of the African Union, celebrated its 60th anniversary, and China and the African Embassy in China jointly held a reception in Beijing to celebrate "Africa Day" to deepen China-Africa cooperation.
China is the largest developing country in the world, Africa is the continent with the largest concentration of developing countries, and China and Africa have always been a community of common destiny. In the decade of the new era, under the guidance of President Xi Jinping's policy concept of true affinity to Africa and the correct concept of righteousness and benefit, the development of China-Africa relations has pressed the "accelerator button" and entered the "fast lane", entering a new era of building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future.
Come and go like a relative
In April 1955, the Bandung Conference was held in Indonesia, and the leaders of China and Africa shook hands for the first time across mountains and seas, kicking off friendly exchanges. From China's support for the just cause of anti-imperialism, anti-colonialism and national liberation in African countries to the support of a number of African countries for China's restoration of its lawful seat in the United Nations, China and Africa have always supported and closely cooperated with each other in the international arena. In the new era, from the docking of development strategies to the implementation of the "Ten Major Cooperation Plans", "Eight Major Actions" and "Nine Projects", China-Africa cooperation in various fields has been continuously deepened.
Today's China-Africa relations are closer in friendly exchanges, and leaders of the two sides often come and go like relatives. Shaking hands again and again, freezing the eternal historical moment——
In the past decade, President Xi Jinping has visited Africa four times, and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation has held two summits. Since November last year, four African presidents have been invited to pay state visits to China, and more than a dozen African officials at or above the ministerial level have visited China. The China-Africa Conference on Poverty Reduction and Development and the China-Africa Youth Gala have been held one after another, continuously injecting new connotations into the spirit of China-Africa friendship and cooperation.
This is April 27, 2023, PIL Shipping - Western Land-Sea New Corridor River, Rail, Sea Intermodal Africa Special Train waiting to depart at Yuzui Station of Chongqing Guoyuan Port.
On May 26, President Xi Jinping said during his talks with President Tshisekedi that China firmly supports Africa in taking an independent development path, firmly supports Africa to become an important pole of world politics, economy and civilization, and is willing to provide new opportunities for African countries with its own new development, work with African brothers to implement the outcomes of the Dakar meeting of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, promote the joint construction of the "Belt and Road", support Africa to achieve sustainable development, and work together to build a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era.
Under the current international situation, China and Africa need to strengthen solidarity and cooperation more than ever. In April this year, Gabonese President Bongo said in an interview on the occasion of his visit to China that the global development initiative, global security initiative and global civilization initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping are highly consistent with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the African Union's Agenda 2063, promoting the protection of international peace and security and promoting the development and cultural prosperity of all countries.
Eritrean President Isaias also said during his visit to China in May that the current evolution of the international order is at a critical stage, African countries are still facing hegemonism and various unfair and unjust treatment, and the international community is more expected and believes that China will make greater contributions to human development and progress and international fairness and justice.
State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang said in his speech at the reception celebrating "Africa Day" on the 25th that China has always supported the African Union and African sub-regional organizations in playing a leading role in resolving regional conflicts, and supports African people in solving African issues in African ways; It has always supported Africa to play a greater role on the world stage, insisted on speaking out for Africa in the United Nations and other multilateral forums, and was the first country to explicitly support the African Union's accession to the G20.
Hand in hand on the road to modernization
From the Kinsuka Bridge in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Malawi Parliament Building, to the Algerian No. 1 communications satellite, the Sultan Merowe Dam... A number of China-Africa cooperation projects have become "national landmarks", bringing tangible benefits to the local people, and some have been printed on the banknotes of African countries, becoming vivid witnesses of China-Africa friendship and mutual assistance.
On the triumphal boulevard in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the People's Palace and the Martyrs' Stadium, which were built with the assistance of the Chinese government in the seventies and eighties of the 20th century, are located here. Across the street, the Central African Culture and Art Center, shaped like an "African drum", is entering the completion sprint. In the future, it is expected to become a new landmark in Central Africa's largest city.
This is the construction site of the Central African Culture and Art Center project built with Chinese assistance in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 23, 2023.
The Kinsuka substation, located around Kinshasa, is also under construction as planned. The Kinsuka substation project is the first major infrastructure and livelihood project implemented by China and the Democratic Republic of the Congo after joining the Belt and Road Cooperation Initiative in 2021. When completed, it will become the first automated distribution network in the DRC and the largest and most technologically advanced 220 kV substation in Kinshasa, which can significantly improve the power supply in the capital region of the DRC and play a constructive role in promoting local economic development and regional integration in Central Africa.
Muwuni, Minister of State and Minister of Infrastructure and Public Works of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said that over the years, infrastructure cooperation with China has made important contributions to the economic and social development of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has a great demand for interconnection infrastructure such as roads and railways, and infrastructure cooperation between the two countries has great potential.
Under the impetus of cooperation mechanisms such as the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the Belt and Road Initiative, Africa's infrastructure construction has undergone earth-shaking changes. Today, China and Africa have cooperated in building more than 10,000 kilometers of railways, nearly 100,000 kilometers of highways, nearly 1,000 bridges, nearly 100 ports, and network services covering nearly 700 million user terminals. China has been Africa's largest trading partner for 14 consecutive years.
Monyae, director of the Africa-China Research Centre at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa, said: "The success of Chinese-style modernization will inspire and influence the modernization of other countries in the world, especially for the modernization exploration of African developing countries." ”
In his view, along with China's historical process of promoting Chinese-style modernization, "Africa-China cooperation has broad prospects and richer cooperation content and forms, and it is hoped that the results of pragmatic cooperation between the two sides will better benefit the people of both sides."
The tree of friendship is growing more and more lush
China-Africa relations are rooted in the people and in exchanges. After careful nurturing and hard work by both sides, the tree of China-Africa cooperation has grown vigorously and is now deeply rooted and fruitful.
Chinese people will not forget that after the Wenchuan earthquake and the Yushu earthquake, African countries and people generously donated to support Chinese people in earthquake relief. African people will always remember that more than 60 Chinese employees have been in Africa since 1963 and stationed in Africa, facing Ebola, new crown pneumonia, malaria and other epidemics, China has led the international community to aid Africa in fighting the epidemic with practical actions, interpreting the brotherhood of China and Africa in hardship and common suffering.
Aliri Hyira (left), 63, goes to the hospital to thank Li Hongling, a doctor from the Chinese medical team in Ain Difra, Algeria, February 27, 2023.
In January this year, the completion ceremony of the headquarters (phase I) of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Phase I) project between China and the African Union was held. As a flagship project on Africa announced at the 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit, the center is the first Africa-wide CDC on the African continent with modern office and experimental conditions and complete facilities, which is of great significance for improving the speed of disease prevention, surveillance and emergency response to epidemics in Africa.
Eneto Fred, senior engineer at the AU Commission, said: "China's support for Africa is as always true to its word. ”
A batch of poverty alleviation projects have been implemented one after another, and groups of Chinese agricultural experts have gone to the fields of the African continent to carry out technical assistance on the ground. At the same time, China has also actively established a "green channel" for African agricultural products to export to China, and a large number of African agricultural products such as avocados from Kenya, sesame seeds from Tanzania, peanuts from Senegal and fresh pears from South Africa have entered the Chinese market, favored by Chinese consumers.
Talent training is the key to the country's future development. China has helped build schools in many African countries, shared teaching experience, and actively promoted cooperation and exchanges between Chinese and African scientific research and teaching institutions. Since the first Luban workshop in Africa landed in Djibouti in March 2019, China has built more than ten Luban workshops in Africa, which has promoted the development and innovation of vocational education in Africa and has been widely praised.
Mohammed Belhussein, member of the AU Commission on Education, Science and Technology and Innovation, said that strengthening cooperation between China and Africa in various fields, especially in capacity building, will continue to promote higher economic growth on the African continent.
At present, both China and Africa stand at a new historical starting point and are ushering in new important opportunities. Under the guidance and promotion of the diplomacy of the head of state, the construction of a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era will surely make new historic achievements and make greater contributions to promoting the common prosperity and progress of mankind.
－END－
Planning: Ni Siyi Ying Qiang
Executive Producer: Feng Junyang
Coordinator: Xie Peng, Han Mo, Yan Junyan
Reporters: Zhou Chuyun, Liu Wanli, Shi Yu, Xie Jiang, Xie Hao, Wang Ping
Editors: Zhao Yan, Chen Shan, Zhang Yuan, Zhang Dailei
Photography: Liu Weibing, Huang Wei, Shi Yu
Produced by the International Department of Xinhua News Agency
Source: Xinhua News Agency