Johannesburg: Chinese Commerce Vice Minister Qian Keming has praised the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) for leading in the implementation and design of new practical measures for China-Africa Cooperation.
He was speaking to the media on Saturday about commercial cooperation between Africa and China, following major announcements made by Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday during the opening ceremony of the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
President Xi announced ten cooperation plans that cover the areas of industrialisation, agricultural modernisation, infrastructure, financial services, green development, trade and investment facilitation, poverty reduction and public welfare, public health, people-to-people exchanges, and peace and security.
Qian said the new practical measures featured development strategies of China and African countries, extensive coverage and Innovation on the basis of traditional good practices.
“We have conducted a series of research on Africa’s development plans, such as the Agenda 2063 and its priorities for the next decade, and China’s ten cooperation plans which were announced yesterday.
“These plans are connecting with each other, and these new measures will further demonstrate that China and Africa are going to have a joint participation and implementation in these plans,” he said.
He said these new measures will help step up agriculture sustainable development, poverty eradication and public health, to improve the lives of African people.
The Vice Minister said China wants to help African countries to set up more favourable conditions for their development through industrialisation and infrastructure cooperation.
He said China is looking into implementing technology transfer to African countries because it believes that capacity building is vital for development.
Vice Minister Qian said China and Africa have made few arrangements for trade facilitation to support investment in Africa.
China also wants to promote the development of the agriculture sector in Africa and promote local agriculture production, to contribute to Africa’s food security.
He said China has so far provided about 55 000 students from Africa with scholarships to study in China, and it has trained about 83 000 professionals in various fields, and it will further provide 20 000 government scholarships to African students in the near future.
“In the next three years, about 40 000 Africans will be invited for training and workshops in China,” said Vice Minister.
He said China believed that vocational training is important for industrialisation.
SOURCE: SOUTH AFRICAN OFFICAL NEWS