World must listen to Africa — Chinese foreign minister

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, last weekend said the stability of Africa’s development would be vital to the future of humanity.

Wang said that the world must, therefore, listen to Africa and its concerns.

He said this at a news conference on China’s external relations.

The foreign minister spoke on the sidelines of the Third Session of the 14th National People’s Congress in Beijing.

Wang highlighted strategic partnerships established by China with all African countries which had diplomatic ties with it.

According to him, Africa is a fertile land of hope.

The minister emphasised that there would be no global modernisation without African modernisation.

He said that Africa was going through a new awakening, urging that countries should support the continent in exploring a new development path of self-reliance and self-strengthening.

“This year marks the beginning of implementing the outcomes of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, and China stands ready to deliver on the 10 partnership actions.

He said that delivering on the partnership actions would include supporting Africa in accelerating industrialisation and agricultural modernisation.

The minister also said that it would include fostering new growth drivers such as digital, green and Artificial Intelligence industries, promoting 1,000 small and beautiful livelihood projects, enhancing governance experience, and sharing and raising representation and voice of Africa in international events.

Wang said that, in 2025, the G20 Summit would be held on the African continent for the first time, emphasising that China firmly supported South Africa in carrying out its duty as G20 president and in leaving a distinctively African mark on global governance.

He further said that in the past 25 years, China had helped Africa to build or upgrade nearly 100,000km of roads and more than 10,000km of railways.

According to him, in the past three years, Chinese enterprises created more than 1.1 million new jobs in Africa.

He said that China had remained Africa’s largest trade partner for 16 consecutive years.

“To African brothers and sisters, China-Africa cooperation is visible, tangible and truly beneficial.

“China and Africa are good friends, good partners and good brothers with a shared future, and the China-Africa community with a shared future has been elevated to an all-weather level,” Wang said.