At the invitation of President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa, I will soon make a state visit to the Republic of South Africa and attend the 15th BRICS Summit

It will be my sixth visit to the promising land of the “rainbow nation”.

South Africa is home to the great statesman Nelson Mandela, and it boasts the richest tourist resources, the longest road network, the biggest securities exchange, and the busiest airports and harbours in Africa. The country exudes unique charm with the perfect amalgam of the ancient and the modern, and of nature and culture.

Each of my visits to South Africa gave me new impressions. But the deepest is invariably the brotherly sentiments we have toward each other.

Our friendship has traversed a long span of time. As early as in the mid-20th century, the newly founded People’s Republic of China lent firm support to the South African people in fighting apartheid, and stood with the African National Congress as comrades and friends.

Our friendship has defied the obstacles of mountains and oceans. Facing the sudden onslaught of COVID-19, China was among the first to provide anti-pandemic supplies to South Africa, reaffirming our special brotherhood.

More recently, China also provided to the country emergency power equipment. Over the past 25 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties, our relationship has achieved leapfrog development—from a partnership to a strategic partnership, and then to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

It is one of the most vibrant bilateral relations in the developing world. Our relationship has entered a “golden era”, enjoying broad prospects and a promising future.

In recent years, President Ramaphosa and I have maintained close communication through visits, meetings, phone calls and letters. We jointly explore cooperation opportunities, pursue development, and stand up to common challenges.

Our strategic mutual trust has been deepening steadily. We give each other firm support on issues involving our respective core interests and major concerns, and maintain coordination on major international and regional issues. We work together to practice true multilateralism and push for the building of a more just and equitable international order.

South Africa was the first African country to sign the Belt and Road cooperation document with China. It has been China’s biggest trading partner in Africa for 13 years in a row, as well as one of the African countries with the largest stock of Chinese investment.

The pie of bilateral cooperation is getting bigger. South Africa’s wines, rooibos tea, and aloe vera gels are trending products in China. Many Chinese companies are expanding their operation and at the same time taking more social responsibilities in South Africa.

Automobiles and home appliances with Chinese brands yet made in South Africa are very popular among local consumers, and are now owned by numerous South African households.

South African companies are also racing to invest in the Chinese market to seize the abundant business opportunities, and they have made important contribution to China’s economic growth.

South Africa’s Ubuntu philosophy advocates compassion and sharing. It resonates well with the values of Confucianism—“love the people and all beings and seek harmony among all nations”.

In 2015, I participated in the Year of China activities in South Africa, and witnessed the gratifying achievements of our Year of China/South Africa programs.

Last April, the faculty and students of the Confucius Institute at Durban University of Technology wrote me a letter in Chinese, expressing their fondness for the Chinese culture and thanking China for the valuable opportunities provided to young Africans chasing their dreams.

I find it very heart-warming. Indeed, these vibrant people-to-people exchanges enhance the empathy between our peoples, and enable our friendship to be passed down from generation to generation.

The China-South Africa relationship is standing at a new historical starting point. It has gone beyond the bilateral scope and carries increasingly important global influence. During my forthcoming visit, I look forward to working with President Ramaphosa to chart the plan for a new chapter of our comprehensive strategic partnership.

China and South Africa should be fellow companions sharing the same ideals.

As an ancient Chinese saying goes, “A partnership forged with the right approach defies distance; it is thicker than glue and stronger than metal and rock.”

We need to increase our experience sharing on governance, and firmly support each other in independently exploring a path to modernization that suits our respective national conditions. We should fear no hegemony, and work with each other as real partners to push forward our relations amid the changing international landscape.

China and South Africa should be pacesetters for solidarity and cooperation.

We will succeed because of our biggest strengths in high economic complementarity and the solid foundation for cooperation.

We need to further synergise development strategies, promote stronger cooperation in infrastructure, digital economy, scientific and technological innovation and energy transition, and ensure that more people of our two countries will benefit from the development outcomes.

China welcomes more South African products to its market, and encourages more Chinese companies to invest and do business in South Africa as an effort of support for South Africa’s target to double its inbound investment over the next five-year period.

China and South Africa should be inheritors of China-Africa friendship.

We need to leverage the all-round, multi-tiered and institutionalized mechanisms for people-to-people exchanges between our two countries, and continue to advance exchanges and cooperation in culture, tourism, education, sports, media, universities, sub-national governments and the youth. We must keep the spirit of China-Africa friendship and cooperation as alive and strong as ever across the vast lands of China and Africa.

China and South Africa should be champions of our common interests.

What the world needs today is peace, not conflict; what the world wants is coordination, not confrontation. China and South Africa, as natural members of the Global South, should all the more work together to appeal for greater voice and influence of developing countries in international affairs, promote accelerated reform of international financial institutions, and oppose unilateral sanctions and the “small yard, high fence” approach. We should jointly safeguard our common interests.

The BRICS Summit is another important agenda during my visit to South Africa. This is the third time for the Summit to take place on this continent brimming with vibrancy and hope. I still have vivid memories of the Summit in the picturesque Sanya, China’s Hainan Province, when South Africa made the formal debut as a member of the BRICS family.

Over the past 12 years, South Africa has made important contributions to the development of BRICS cooperation mechanism, further substantiating BRICS cooperation and extending its influence.

Now more and more countries are knocking on the door of BRICS, aspiring to join our cooperation.

This is a testament to the vitality and influence of the BRICS cooperation mechanism. China is ready to work with fellow BRICS partners to act on the BRICS spirit of openness, inclusiveness and win-win cooperation, build consensus on important issues, carry forward our tradition of independent diplomacy, and resolutely uphold international equity and justice. We will urge the international community to refocus on development issues, promote a greater role by the BRICS cooperation mechanism in global governance, and make the voice of BRICS stronger.

It has been ten years since I put forth “sincerity, real results, amity and good faith” as the principles for China to develop its relations with Africa. The past decade has witnessed our joint pursuit of a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era, and the completion and handover of a host of projects including the Africa CDC Headquarters, the Foundiougne Bridge in Senegal, the Nairobi Expressway and the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, renewing China-Africa friendship across the vast lands of China and Africa.

In face of the profound changes unseen in a century, a strong China-Africa relationship and productive China-Africa cooperation will provide more fresh impetus to global development and ensure greater stability of the world.

This is an international responsibility and historical mission entrusted to the 2.8 billion Chinese and African peoples. We will convene a China-Africa Leaders’ Dialogue.

I will work with African leaders to bring more active, effective and sustainable development initiatives to Africa, expand cooperation in agriculture, manufacturing, new energy and digital economy, and facilitate Africa’s economic integration, industrialization and agricultural modernization. China will continue to work for substantive progress in African Union’s joining of the G20 this year, and looks forward to a greater role by African countries and the AU in international and regional affairs.

As an ancient Chinese poem goes, “With high tide and tailwind, it is time to sail a smooth ride.”

Looking ahead into the next 25 years, the giant ship of China-South Africa friendship and cooperation will sail forward, and we will make even greater progress in the building of a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era as well as the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

* Xi Jinping is the President of the People’s Republic of China.

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC- CHINA TIES

During their stay in the Central African Republic, medical experts from China conduct treatment while also teaching their know-how of Chinese medicine to the Central African population. They continue to write the moving story of friendship between China and Africa.

As Presidentl Xi Jinping pointed out, they are not just angels in white coats saving the dying and caring for the wounded, they are also messengers of China – Africa friendship.

The Chinese Medical Practitioners are the 19th Chinese medical aid team to the Central African Republic set out from Jiaxing city, Zhejiang province, for an 18-month overseas medical aid mission. Their specialties include neurology, ophthalmology, gynecology and acupuncture, among others.

Story by Sarah Marjorey Kisakye

Chinese Youth Artist promotes African friendship

Hello everyone, I am Oscar Yang, and I’m 24 years old.
I come from China in Jinhe Town, Genhe City, Inner Mongolia, and I have lived in Beijing since 2014.
I started drawing new friends I have meet from other countries after attending the Spanish Day event that was held at the Cervantes Institute in Beijing in 2016 and the USTB International Cultural Festival in 2017, I made friends from several African, Caribbean and Latin American countries, and over the years, I have committed to developing the cause of friendly cooperation and exchange with people from different cultures than I. My art is my way of building a bridge of shared community and future for mankind and promoting the development of friendly cooperation and mutual assistance among countries in the world.

Interviewed by Sarah Marjorey

China-Equatorial Guinea Friendship Primary School

As soon as you enter the school building, you are welcomed by the brightly done paintings and calligraphy works full on the walls, delighting your eyes and heart. The works displayed on the walls are all made by the teachers and students of the school.
One of the walls, is written the Chinese inscription, “Long live China-Africa friendship”

The “China-Equatorial Guinea Friendship Primary School”, founded in 1918, was originally named Jinping County No. 1 Primary School. It is one-hundred-year-old school. The Government of Equatorial Guinea and China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs play departmental tasks towards the development of the school.
The school has been a big tie factor in cementing “China-Equatorial Guinea Friendship. More developmental work was recently made on the school in June 2016, seeing the grand opening of a five-story teaching building and a sports field.
Through this school, the young Chinese learn more about African countries and develop a great passion for Africa.

The new teaching building was named “Friendship Building”, with a total of 20 classrooms. Among the series of special exhibition rooms on the first floor, is the Equatorial Guinea dedication exhibition room, which is particularly eye-catching. On the wall of the exhibition room, a student wrote: “What is friendship? Friendship is caring, friendship is mutual assistance, friendship is spring breeze, and friendship is the driving force for one’s progress.”
Bathed in the spring breeze of friendship, the school has expanded from the original 32 teaching classes with 1,600 students to 45 teaching classes with more than 2,000 students. The configuration of the library, painting room, and other functional rooms also provide the necessary foundation for students’ hobbies. The students are glad to show off their talents of calligraphy, paintings, dancing and singing.
The interesting interaction is quite a unique experience, rich with a history of friendship between the two countries and how it has remained operational for years.
The Principal of the school,
In China, youth are taught to love and serve their country, as well as having clear visions and skills to serve national interests.
In photos :Ms. Ran Hong Yang poses for a photograph and a storied class building, students keenly attending a class.

Story by Sarah Marjorey Kisakye

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund predicted very recently that the global economic growth will slow down. The IMF, however, pointed out that output would be more resilient than previously anticipated, inter alia, due to the reopening of China’s economy and that a global recession would probably be avoided.

Despite these cautious predictions, Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, expressed a more positive outlook for Africa on Jan 19, saying that the continent is “set to outperform the rest of the world in economic growth over the next two years, with real gross domestic product (growth) averaging around 4 percent in 2023 and 2024 “.

An AfDB report furthermore reflected that all the continent’s five regions remain resilient with a steady outlook for the medium-term, despite facing significant headwinds due to global socio-economic shocks. As regards sub-Saharan Africa, the IMF anticipates that its economic growth will increase moderately to 3.8 percent in 2023 and climb to 4.1 percent in 2024.

The AfDB, however, cautioned in its report that risks including tightening global financial conditions, with the associated increase in domestic debt service costs as well as soaring food and energy prices as a result of climate change with its damaging impact on domestic food supply, continue to pose considerable threats to the continent.

Agriculture is a major source of income for most of the rural population of vast parts of Africa. It accounts for half of total employment and more than 32 percent of Africa’s gross domestic product.

Africa has substantial agro-ecological resources but for many reasons, the significant potential of the continent’s agricultural growth has yet to be realized. Paradoxically, food security, for one, is not assured. An “agricultural revolution” is needed with enhanced modernization, seeking solutions through technology transfers, mechanization and increased productivity.

It is in this context that African governments have consistently viewed agriculture as an important driver of growth, development and jobs on the continent. The AU adopted the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme in 2003, a framework with the aim to accelerate coordinated economic and structural transformation by improving agricultural productivity, increasing investment and sharing knowledge.

While many challenges require urgent attention, one of the top priorities is establishing food security which is crucial for sustainable economic development and the long-term prosperity of the African continent. At least one in five Africans goes to bed hungry and an estimated 140 million people in Africa face acute food insecurity, according to the 2022 Global Report on Food Crises 2022 Mid-Year Update produced by the UN World Food Programme, UN Food and Agriculture Organization and other specialized organizations.

Projections show that by 2050, Africa’s population will double. By 2100, one in three people on Earth will be African. Sub-Saharan Africa is home to more than 1 billion people, half of whom will be under the age of 25 years by 2050.

Considering the importance of the agricultural sector for a large segment of the African population, many African countries, while continuing to make progress, are in need of technical assistance to attain higher agricultural growth and find sustainable solutions to their food security challenges. African countries are therefore calling for more international cooperation, focusing on resources, technology, and development support to transform Africa’s agricultural sector.

Agriculture is a significant part of Africa-China cooperation and is of fundamental interest to both sides. Since the decolonization of Africa, China has transferred advanced Chinese agro-food technology to Africa in order to support the continent to mitigate its agricultural challenges. The goal is to leverage Africa and China’s public and private resources such as funding, product and technology and knowledge to promote and sustain inclusive agriculture transformation in Africa. With its many strengths, China’s agricultural development model has proven to be especially valuable to African countries in their endeavors to improve agro-productivity and meet their real and own needs.

Many Africa-China agreements were therefore concluded over the past decade or two to enhance cooperation on agricultural modernization, development of agro-industries, capacity building of young pioneers in farm development, and to increase the export potential of agricultural products as well as food security.

Registering an average annual growth of 14 percent, the trade volume of agricultural products between Africa and China has huge growth potential. But the relationship is not just about trade. According to the Chinese government, nearly 10,000 agricultural officials, technicians, farmers and students from African countries receive training in China each year.

The Chinese government has also launched cooperation programs with agricultural research institutes in more than a dozen African nations and established agricultural technology demonstration centers in 23 African countries which have actively facilitated the ongoing transfer of technology and skills from China to the continent. China continues to strengthen cooperation to help Africa’s agricultural development and poverty eradication efforts, including the appreciated initiative of sending 500 agricultural experts to the continent over the next three years.

The establishment of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2000 has injected significant momentum into agricultural cooperation, delivering tangible outcomes to the African people and also toward the implementation of the AU Agenda 2063 and UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The FOCAC Dakar Action Plan of 2021 includes a number of constructive proposals to extend agricultural cooperation to include the whole industry chain and to continue to share experiences in job creation and poverty reduction through agriculture with a strong focus on alleviating food security. Also of increasing significance is the agreement to advance comprehensive cooperation on climate change with the aim of transitioning to clean and low-carbon energy and to improve the quality of the continent’s development with green cooperation.

Given China’s reputation as a staunch defender of world food security and contributor to global poverty reduction, Africa attaches great importance to its mutually beneficial agricultural cooperation with China which has rapidly grown, establishing a solid foundation for enhanced practical cooperation in the future. Africa welcomes China’s declared approach of strengthening international cooperation with all countries in the interest of global economic growth, development and promotion of economic re-globalization.

The long-standing friendship and excellent relations between China and Africa were strongly reaffirmed by the highly constructive visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang to five African countries last month. Africa is of the view, with the support of China, that the continent should be “a stage for international cooperation, not a wrestling ground for major-power rivalry” as was so eloquently stated by Qin during his visit to Ethiopia.

President Cyril Ramaphosa extends his best wishes to the Government and people of the People’s Republic of China on the occasion of the Chinese Lunar New Year and Annual Spring Festival.

President Ramaphosa has, on behalf of the Government and people of South Africa, expressed his wish that the advent of the Year of the Rabbit will indeed endow citizens of the People’s Republic of China with the longevity, peace and prosperity associated with the zodiac sign for the year ahead.

South Africa values the vibrant economic relations and political cooperation that characterise its partnership with the People’s Republic of China.

President Ramaphosa said: “My dear brothers and sisters from China and all Chinese communities around the world: I wish you all a happy Lunar New Year and a prosperous Spring Festival 2023.

“On behalf of the Government and People of South Africa, I wish the Government and the people of China, including here in South Africa, a happy and fulfilling time of goodwill, celebration and friendship, as you renew the bonds between friends or reunite with family during this period.”

“As we enter the New Year, we are also celebrating the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Republic of South Africa and the People’s Republic of China in 1998.

“In addition, South Africa will succeed China as Chair and host of the next BRICS Summit, during which we hope to receive His Excellency, President Xi Jinping in South Africa. These occasions provide ample cause for celebration.”