Southern Metropolis Daily:
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a major global cooperation initiative proposed by China. What is the attitude of Africa towards the BRI? Has China-Africa cooperation under the BRI achieved results? Thanks.
Wu Peng:
Thank you for your questions. Indeed, the BRI is a public product offered by China to the world, and it is very popular in Africa. Africa is a natural and historical extension of the BRI. Around 600 years ago, the Ming Dynasty admiral Zheng He's fleet once reached the east coast of Africa, near Malindi Island in Kenya. It is believed that the wrecked ship in one village there must be one of Zheng He's fleets. The Palace Museum also sent archaeologists there for excavations and found many examples of Ming Dynasty porcelain left by Zheng He's fleet. These are all archaeological evidence of the fleet's presence there.
The Maritime Silk Road has opened the road of business for China and Africa. The Belt and Road Initiative has earned active support and participation from African countries since its inception. To date, 52 of 53 African countries that have established diplomatic ties with China, as well as the African Union, have signed agreements on cooperation with China to promote the Belt and Road Initiative. Africa is now one of the most important cooperation parties under the initiative. That is to say, almost all African countries have joined in cooperation under the initiative.
In recent years, connectivity between China and Africa under the Belt and Road Initiative has also expanded at a faster pace. A number of transport infrastructure projects have opened to traffic, including the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway, the famous Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway in Kenya, and the No. 1 National Highway of the Republic of the Congo. Projects such as the Doraleh Multi-Purpose Port in Djibouti and the Lome Container Terminal in Togo have been successful in increasing entrepot trade. Innumerable major projects under the initiative play an important role in boosting regional connectivity and integration.
Currently, both China and Africa have entered a new development stage. China is promoting a new development paradigm with the domestic economy and international engagement providing mutual reinforcement, with the former as the mainstay. China's development will create more opportunities for Africa's development. With the official launch of the African Continental Free Trade Area on Jan. 1, 2021, Africa's economic integration is accelerating, providing more room for growth in China-Africa cooperation. The two sides will focus on boosting quality development and further align the goals of the Belt and Road Initiative with those of the AU's Agenda 2063, the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. China and Africa will deepen practical cooperation in all fields and promote the sustainable and high-standard development of the Belt and Road that is beneficial to the people. Thank you.
