Luanda - Angola welcomed the 10 measures announced Thursday in Beijing by the President of China, Xi Jinping, during the 9th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), which also includes connectivity.
This fact was expressed by the minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António, during the High Level meeting on High Quality Belt and Road cooperation, held in Beijing, included in the program of the aforementioned forum.
In front of an audience made up of heads of State and Government, as well as representatives of International and Regional Organizations, minister Téte António stated that the event takes place at a time when it is necessary to build a three-dimensional connectivity network.
He stressed that the network should support the open global economy, carrying out pragmatic cooperation, as a mechanism for promoting green development, scientific and tech innovation, with a view to facilitating exchanges between people, goods and services.
The High-Quality Belt and Road Initiative, launched by China back in 2013, is one of the most ambitious infrastructure and global development initiatives of our time, focusing on building a network of interconnected infrastructures and promoting international trade.
Cooperation in this context is vital to the development of comprehensive China-Africa strategic partnerships and cooperatives.
It embodies the spirit of China-Africa friendship and cooperation in a new historical context, a form of cooperation defined by honesty and friendship, equality and mutual benefit, common development, equity, justice and progress.
Under the Belt and Road Initiative, China and Africa have embarked on a new era of complementarity in development strategies.
New perspectives in infrastructure collaboration were opened, a platform for trade and investment cooperation was created, and innovative progress was made in poverty reduction and benefit sharing, while reaching new heights in scientific, technological and cultural cooperation.
Measures
Among the measures to strengthen China-Africa cooperation presented by President Xi Jinping, there is supporting Africa with 360 billion yuan (45.8 billion euros) until 2027 and helping to create a million jobs on the continent African.
The Chinese president also mentioned that is country will invest at least 70 billion yuan (8.9 billion euros) in the African bloc.
He stated that the country is ready to deepen cooperation with the continent in the economic field, stressing that “ties between China and Africa are going through the best period in history”.
In his opinion, China and Africa must remain united and defend their legitimate rights at a time when the world is undergoing unprecedented changes.
He announced 30 infrastructure projects and renewed his promise to increase agricultural imports from Africa, an intention he had already expressed in FOCAC's previous edition, in Dakar, in 2021.
The leader also emphasized that China will help Africa "promote ecological modernization, green development and the transition to low-carbon technology."
He equally disclosed that China is to donate one billion yuan (127 million euros) in military aid to Africa, as well as for the training of six thousand soldiers.
China is the African continent's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching 167.8 billion dollars (151.8 billion euros) in the first half of the year, according to the official Chinese press.
In total, 50 leaders from African countries and the UN Secretary-General, Portuguese António Guterres, are present at the summit, according to the Chinese press.
FOCAC, which runs until Friday (Sept 6), serves both sides to increase unity and cooperation among developing countries, boost the strength of the Global South, jointly defend international equity and justice, and promote peace and development in the world.
Since the beginning of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the African continent in 1950, cooperation between Africa and the Asian giant has witnessed continuous evolution in the international arena.
The Forum was established as a consultation mechanism for connective dialogue, in addition to representing a future-oriented step in cooperation between the parties, and an important model in the scope of South-South cooperation, in search of common development.
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