Through African Eyes

Every year， African journalists are invited to the inauguration of two of the most important political events in China - the annual sessions of the National Peoples Congress （NPC）， the top legislature， and the National Committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference （CPPCC）， the top political advisory body. Popularly known as lianghui， the two sessions discuss and endorse the blueprint for Chinas social and economic development. This year， more African journalists were able to attend the sessions， thanks to the China Public Diplomacy Associations annual China-Africa Press Exchange Center Project， which is providing 10 months training to over 20 African journalists from seven African countries. During the lianghui， which lasted from March 3 to 16， ChinAfrica reporter Zheng Yang interviewed four African journalists to know their thoughts on this unique experience and their understanding of Sino-African relations.

Godlove Bainkong

Cameroon Tribune， Cameroon

Im glad I got this opportunity to scrutinize the political system in China. I think its a very good system. Its a peoples government approach： the government tells peoples representatives what it intends to do and the representatives deliberate [on that] and give their opinion. It shows that China wants its people to participate and contribute in governance. When governance is participatory， peoples needs would be met.

The two sessions provided a good opportunity for us to learn from Chinas experience. Realizing the challenges China faced and how it surmounted them will be helpful to the African continent. My interest is especially in the agricultural sector because Africa is agriculture-based.

I wish to know the secret of Chinas success in agriculture to see how we can benefit and improve our agricultural productivity. In Cameroon， we still practice farm-to-mouth agriculture， which means agriculture at a subsistence level. But China is into industrial agricultural development.

Chinas success lets us know we could do better， and I think with Chinese expertise we are [making progress.] Currently， Cameroon is trying to create an agricultural bank. I think China can serve as an example because Ive seen the Agricultural Bank of China in Beijing. I would like to know the type of loans the bank gives， the people it gives the loans to， and how many people have benefited from the loans so far.

Its also important for us to learn more about the industrial development of China because Cameroon is trying to improve its industrialization.

After the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in South Africa in December， Chinese President Xi Jinping announced ambitious projects， which are not only for Africa， but for both China and Africa for a win-win relationship. The problems for Africa are [underdeveloped] infrastructure， untrained personnel and [insufficient] funding. I think China understands where Africas problems lie and is helping quite a lot.

In Cameroon， for example， China is into infrastructure development， not only funding projects but also putting its expertise to work to realize the projects. China is funding many projects but doesnt just come and throw the money at the Cameroonian Government. The Chinese Government is bringing well-outlined projects and helping to train African professionals， especially in the engineering sector.

Fredrick Gaye

In Profile Daily， Liberia

Im a political reporter， so what I was trying to follow here was the political [system] itself. I wanted to see what we could learn from Chinas political bodies to educate and empower our people in Africa.

What impressed me most in the Government Work Report [tabled by Premier Li Keqiang at the opening of the NPC on March 5] was the leaderswillingness to implement plans. Even if you [draft plans for the economy] it would be a waste of resources and energy without the political will to implement the plans. In the report， I saw coordinated efforts to carry out the plans and the harmony in implementing them. I think African leaders can learn from this.

China is opening up to the world； other countries should open up to China too， so that they could learn from one another. If you learn from one another， you would find out the problems and then solve them.

Caroline Mwangi

K24 TV， Kenya

Attending the two sessions opened my eyes. I have found it very impressive that China never rests. China is one of the biggest economies in the world but I can see that has not made the government complacent. They are still doing things to make sure that they keep growing. The better the country does， the more [vigorously] they continue to work.

One of my focuses during the two sessions was the high pollution. According to the Government Work Report， great efforts will be made to deal with air pollution. But its a huge challenge. But I think it can be done， step by step， if proper laws are put in place and implemented.

In Kenya， where people are very environmentally conscious， we might not have issues like the smog in Beijing but we do have environmental challenges. More and more people are cutting down trees to build houses， which could result in very serious problems.

The Ministry of Environment， Water and Natural Resources is working hard to increase the forest cover in Kenya. So Im looking forward to see how the anti-pollution remedies suggested by the Chinese delegations are implemented.

David Yarboi-Tetteh

The Ghanaian Times， Ghana

The event is interesting because it brings forward what the Chinese Government wants to do in the next five years. The Government Work Report [specifically] talks about investment in railway and road construction， and the GDP growth rate. It gives a clear indication of where the country will be in the next five-year period.

The report talks about GDP growth of 6.5 percent to 7 percent - quite an impressive figure - and increasing employment for people. Weve been talking about the increasing unemployment in the world， so its very interesting to see that the Chinese Government is also focusing on that area to ensure citizens have jobs and to improve the standard of living in China.

Besides， Im glad to see the [Chinese] Government is paying attention to manufacturing quality products， which will help trade and hence consolidate the relationship between China and Africa. Im also glad to realize that the Chinese Government is putting in place structures that would facilitate the China-Africa relation and partnership.