Sino-African Cooperation Reaches New Level

By LI ANSHAN

POLITICAL and economic situations in Africa have been largely stable since the beginning of 2014. Constant advances in regional integration have contributed to positive growth on the continent， boosting its appeal to foreign investment； an increasing number of international corporations are coming to Africa.

The visit by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in 2014 to the continent had positive implications worldwide and furthered Sino-African cooperation in such fields as politics， economy， social undertakings， culture and people-topeople exchanges.

Africas Political Developments in 2014

Several African countries held presidential and parliamentary elections in 2014. In general all ran smoothly. Despite an attack by anti-government militants several days before polling day， the presidential election in Algeria was peaceful on the whole， and recognized by the international community. The general election in South Africa was also a big event of the year. As many as 29 political parties competed， and the African National Congress （ANC）， supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions （COSATU） and the South African Communist Party （SACP）， won the majority of seats in the National Assembly for the fifth time. The process was orderly and peaceful. Polls were also successfully conducted in Egypt， Botswana， Malawi and Tunisia.

In the past， it was a given that major elections in African countries would spark controversy， causing tempers to run high and chaos to ensue. But 2014 was different. Though the competition was as fierce as before， consensus had formed among African people to execute their political rights conferred by the constitution in a just and orderly manner.

African economy has maintained brisk growth since the mid-1990s， with annual growth above five percent. Morocco has the best economic performance in North Africa， with robust development in multiple industries in addition to oil production. In Egypt， still in the transition period after the presidential election， growth exceeded one percent. Tunisia， with its advantage of geographical proximity to Europe， keeps its competitive edge.

In its 2014 report entitled Regional Economic Outlook： Sub-Saharan Africa， the International Monetary Fund （IMF） anticipated a five percent pickup in economic growth throughout the region. Many countries in the area are ramping up infrastructure construction and the capacities of their energy and electricity industries. These factors， in addition to advances in their service industries and bumper harvests in the agricultural sector， fuel economic development in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The IMF projected the 2014 GDP increase would hit 9 percent in Chad， 8.3 percent in Mozambique and Niger， 8.2 percent in Ethiopia and 6.7 percent on average in low-income African countries.

Regional integration in the continent also made headway in 2014. The three leading regional economic blocks– the East African Community （EAC）， the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa （COMESA） and the Southern African Development Community （SADC） –reached an agreement to launch a free trade zone at the end of 2014. Covering 26 countries with a total population of 625 million and collective GDP of US $12 billion， 58 percent of the GDP of the whole African Union （AU）， the FTZ is expected to be the largest on the continent and will become the centerpiece of the pan-African FTZ anticipated in 2017.

Problems nevertheless persist in Africa. Military coups and terrorist activities in certain countries disrupt social and political order， threaten everyday life and deter foreign investment. The Ebola epidemic in Western Africa is showing substantive damaging effects on local economies. Other obstacles to African social and economic development include inequality in the international political and economic order， faults in state governance such as corruption and low efficiency， impediments to regional connectivity， such as custom clearance， migration and infrastructure， insufficient foreign investment， and disease.

Frequent High-level Reciprocal Visits

The marked progress of Sino-African cooperation in 2014 is manifest in three aspects – high-level reciprocal visits， six cooperative programs and extended social and cultural cooperation in such areas as poverty reduction and medical aid.

In his May visit to Africa Chinese Premier Li Keqiang called on the two sides to stick to four principles： treating each other sincerely and equally， consolidating solidarity and mutual trust， jointly pursuing inclusive development， and promoting innovation in bilateral practical cooperation. He identified six areas – industry， finance， poverty reduction， ecological conservation， people-to-people ex-

changes， and peace and security – on which the two sides should focus. Li suggested an upgraded version of SinoAfrican cooperation that will elevate their comprehensive cooperative partnership to a new level by making good use of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation platform.

A highlight of the premiers visit was Chinas proposal of multi-polarization in global governance. Lis two speeches at the African Union and at the 2014 World Economic Forum on Africa conveyed to the world that China is poised to not only play a key role in the world economy， but also be active in creating a multi-polar world with other peace-loving countries， contributing its share to the establishment of a new framework for global governance rooted in justice and equality.

The Chinese premier expounded the significance of Africa in world politics， economy and culture. First， with a total of 54 countries， Africa occupies a quarter of the United Nations seats and plays an important role in safeguarding world peace and stability. It is indeed a significant pole in the global political stage. Second， boasting a vast geographical expanse， abundant resources and strong growth momentum， Africa is commonly recognized as a major emerging market. It is the newest pole in global economic growth. Third， Africa has a time-honored history and brilliant culture. It is the origin of human civilization and has had a far-reaching impact on the worlds cultural diversity， exchanges and dissemination. It is indeed a colorful pole in world civilizations.

Putting this view in the context of the multi-polarization process that China advocates， we can come to the conclusion that Africa is given a due place in the multi-polarized pattern China envisages， which is an open， inclusive system. As corroborated by Lis remarks during his speech at the 24th World Economic Forum on Africa， “The rise of Africa as a new pole will make the world more democratic， stable， dynamic and colorful， and better facilitate peace， development and progress.”

Several African leaders visited China in 2014， including the presidents of Senegal， Mali， Ethiopia， Zimbabwe and Tanzania. The most remarkable of these visits might be that of 90-year-old president of Zimbabwe Robert Mugabe， his 13th to China， and that of the president of Tanzania Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete.

The visit by Mr. Mugabe， the longest serving African president and the only founding leader still in office， had dual significance. First， it occurred after Mr. Mugabe was not invited to the U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit， which denotes Chinas attitude towards him. Second， China expressed support for Zimbabwe， which faces long-standing sanctions by the West due to the independent stance Mugabe hews to. In fact， the land reform the president spearheaded has made an impact to some extent， as recognized by international academic circles. The West now realizes it is time to set the record straight： The EU recently lifted trade sanctions against the country.

As for the visit by Mr. Kikwete， it is another token of enhanced Sino-Tanzanian friendship. An old friend of China， Mr. Kikwete met with multiple Chinese leaders. He called for closer cooperation between the two governments as well as more economic and cultural exchanges between their peoples. The president extolled the projects Chinese companies are undertaking in Tanzania and the trade opportunities that Yiwu， a city in East China， provides for African businesspeople. He looked forward to deepening cooperative ties between the two countries in such fields as politics， trade and economy， tourism and education.

Growing Trade and People-to-People Exchanges

The economic ties between China and Africa have grown stronger over past years. China has been the continents largest trade partner for five successive years. Should the goal of further cooperation in the six fields identified by the Chinese premier be reached， both sides would see substantial benefits. Such cooperation meets the pressing demands of African countries， and also caters to the needs of Chinas economic restructuring amid deepened reforms. Cooperation on infrastructure is a key aspect. This includes high-speed train research & development centers and aviation cooperation programs. In the field of finance， China decided to expand an existing credit line to several African states by US $10 billion and inject US $2 billion into the China-Africa Development Fund. Capital shortfall has long caused delays to African development. Chinese loans and funds could ease the entry of Chinese corporations into Africa and meanwhile， facilitate African peoples economic activities， creating more jobs on the continent.

In the field of poverty reduction， China can share its experience， particularly in agricultural development， with African countries in their fight against poverty. Non-governmental cooperation in this regard kicked off in 2014. The China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation（CFPA） and the China Lingshan Public Charity Promotion Association jointly sponsored a Smiling Children program for Africa， and Ethiopia was selected to be the first recipient country. The Lingshan Association donated RMB 3 million， and promised RMB 10 million more over the next five years to pay for free nutritious meals for Ethiopian children. Once the fund reaches US $500，000 the program will be extended to a new recipient country in Africa.

Ecological conservation is a highlight of the six cooperative programs. In his African tour Premier Li Keqiang announced that China would offer US $10 million in aid for wildlife protection， and that the two sides would extend their cooperation to forestry conservation and desertification control.

Security is a new area of China-Africa cooperation. Chinas involvement in this regard is based on respect for the African countries concerned and the consent of the AU， and evolves within the UN framework. The intention is the continents cohesion rather than division. This makes China distinct from Western countries on Africa security issues. In 2014 China sent hundreds of peacekeepers on a UN mission to South Sudan.

In response to the Ebola epidemic， China has donated medical supplies to the hardest hit regions including Guinea， Liberia and Sierra Leone， and dispatched 200 medical workers to the disaster zones. On top of three batches of assistance worth RMB 250 million to affected African countries and international organizations， on October 24 China provided a further RMB 500 million in aid， and launched a public health cooperation program with Africa. According to the program， China will sponsor 12 training sessions on public health and disease prevention and control in the three African countries affected by Ebola， the AU and the Economic Community of West African States （ECOWAS） in 2015. It will also rally Chinese medical resources in Africa， including aid projects in hospitals， anti-malaria centers， laboratories and medical teams， to carry out joint research on tropical diseases. Whats more， China will help African countries set up public health information platforms and epidemic prevention， control and monitoring networks.

As work in the above six fields proceeds， Sino-African cooperation is bound to reach a higher level.