China, West Can Be Partners,Not Rivals in Africa’s Development

By+ZHU+DONGYANG

AFRICA， the last continent on Earth that suffers pervasive poverty although widely regarded as a land of vibrant potential， has been busy lately greeting high-ranking officials from Western developed nations and Asian economic powerhouses.

Its noteworthy that the recent four- nation tour of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has practically overlapped those of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.

Coincidentally， Ethiopia and Angola， two legs of Lis Africa tour， were also part of Kerrys itinerary.

That coincidence may lead to a rash assumption that the worlds economic heavyweights are engaged in a fierce race to grab their share of the most promising continent.

Certain biased commentators in the West tend to see China， a latecomer to Africa， as a rising contender， and smear it as the new colonist that snatches natural resources to fit its own development agenda just as Western powers did centuries ago.

Such misconceptions only attest to the Wests poor knowledge about the real story of China-Africa cooperation.

The unremitting and ever-robust China-Africa partnership originates in shared aspirations to common development and improvement of peoples livelihood.

That effort， as defined by Li and African leaders in a joint statement on May 7， welcomes diversification of Africas cooperative partners， or “a third party” in Africa “on the basis of its need， consent and participation.”

The openness and inclusiveness of such cooperation is also manifest in expanding joint ventures on the continent financed by China and other countries. It is distinct from the old Western approach of snatching the spear of influence and stopping the entry of outsiders.

Furthermore， politicizing Chinas normal business cooperation with Africa is doomed to failure， as enhancing peoples livelihood is pursued by two sides whose economies are highly complementary and impossible to alienate.

The strategic partnership of China and Africa， with an eye to benefiting both their own peoples and the globe at large， is thus one that features greater tenacity and longer duration.

Promoting economic ties with Africa is by no means a zero-sum game for China and the West. The vast continent， full of commercial potential and business opportunities， is large enough to accommodate competent companies from all countries on an equal footing.