FM keeps up tradition with six-day visit to Africa

Foreign Minister Wang Yi will start a six-day visit to Egypt, Tunisia, Togo and Cote d'Ivoire on Saturday, marking the 34th consecutive year that Africa has been the destination of the first overseas visit of the year by China's foreign minister.

The visit aims to implement the outcomes of the China-Africa Leaders' Dialogue held in August in Johannesburg, South Africa, during which President Xi Jinping launched three cooperation initiatives to further support Africa's industrialization, agricultural modernization and talent development, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said on Thursday.

As the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation will convene a new session this year, Wang will coordinate with the African countries on the preparation of the meeting and work to consolidate unity and cooperation between the two sides, Mao said at a regular news conference in Beijing.

Under the framework of the FOCAC, China has proposed and implemented a wide range of cooperation plans, initiatives and projects to support Africa's autonomous development.

Liu Hongwu, director of the Institute of African Studies of Zhejiang Normal University said the annual first overseas Africa visit by the Chinese foreign minister showed that China has long been attaching importance to cooperation with Africa to address the continent's urgent needs for growth.

The large number of Chinese-built infrastructure and industrial parks in Africa facilitate the integration process and the "made in Africa" drive, Liu said, adding that cooperation in agriculture, including the introduction of China's hybrid rice, helps Africa better tap into its rich agricultural resources.

China has been Africa's largest trade partner for 14 consecutive years. In the first half of 2023, bilateral trade reached $140.9 billion, a year-on-year increase of 3.1 percent, according to statistics from the Ministry of Commerce.

During his visit to Tanzania in 2013, President Xi put forward the guiding principles of China's policies toward Africa, "sincerity, real results, amity and good faith".

The principles are a precise reflection of the nature of China-Africa relations, said Sun Hong, an associate researcher at the Institute of African Studies of the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.

Over the past year, leaders of a number of African countries have visited China and met with President Xi.

The high degree of political mutual trust serves as "ballast" for China-Africa relations, said Sun.

The largest developing country and the continent with the largest number of developing countries have worked closely to tackle challenges, and given each other the firmest support on issues concerning their core interests, Sun said.

Such cooperation helps to increase the representation and solidarity of the Global South, and is of great significance in terms of creating a fairer and more reasonable international order, she said.

Following his visit to Africa, the Chinese foreign minister will visit Brazil and Jamaica from Jan 18 to 22.