China Youth Daily:
Nowadays, the world is increasingly polarized, and separatism is on the rise. The white paper was issued against such a backdrop. My question is, what is the significance of holding the FOCAC conference and highlighting China-Africa cooperation against such a backdrop?
Wu Peng:
You posed a very big question. I think what you are referring to is what is the significance of China-Africa cooperation and FOCAC in terms of international relations. I will follow what Mr. Wu Jianghao has said just now. We always hold that demands from Africa should be the core consideration of China-Africa cooperation or other international cooperation with African countries. As Mr. Wu Jianghao said, Africa should be a stage for international cooperation, not an arena for competition among major countries. As the head of the department of African affairs of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I am occupied with considering the needs of African countries and China-Africa cooperative projects every day. I barely have time to think about how other countries see China-Africa cooperation. You asked about the significance of FOCAC. Africa has encountered serious but temporary difficulties. The pandemic caused the most serious economic recession in half a century in Africa in 2020, but in 2021 the economy has recovered with good momentum. The impact of COVID-19 will not disappear in the short term, there is still a lot of work to be done to achieve sustainable development, but African countries and China have the confidence to overcome these difficulties.
What's the significance of China-Africa cooperation and the FOCAC? I think that, for one thing, China and Africa have entered new development stages, and the advantages of their economic complementarity have become more obvious. China is accelerating the fostering of a new development paradigm and is dedicated to advancing opening-up to a higher level. The newly-established African Continental Free Trade Area also taps into the vast market potential of the continent's 1.3 billion people and its $3.4 trillion economy. We must be aware of the situation and hold a long-term and progressive point of view when cooperating with Africa. Africa has made significant progress seeking economic strength through unity and promoting economic integration, and this has achieved substantial growth momentum into its economy. As a result, China and Africa's development has become even more complementary, and the mutually beneficial cooperation between the two sides has even brighter prospects.
In addition, the latest round of the worldwide sci-tech revolution and industrial transformation has created opportunities for us to deepen China-Africa cooperation. Currently, China-Africa cooperation is seeing sound momentum and is transitioning from a government-led approach to a market-oriented model, from commodity trade to industrial capacity cooperation, and from project contracting to investment operations. Moreover, the pandemic has created new opportunities for collaboration in the internet economy, 5G, healthcare, the supply of industrial chains and other areas both within Africa and between the continent and China, bringing about massive potential for China-Africa cooperation.
China's resolve to enhance cooperation with Africa will not change due to the pandemic or temporary economic recession. The direction of our partnership will remain unchanged, and the actions we take will not be weakened. China will continue upholding the principles of sincerity, real results, amity and good faith, as well as the principles of pursuing the greater good and shared interests, so as to work with our African friends to properly tackle challenges facing China-Africa cooperation under the new circumstances. Looking beyond the pandemic, China will keep its relations with Africa abreast of the times and forge ahead to inject new vitality into the cooperation between the two sides and bring tangible benefits to people in China and Africa.
Thank you.
