"One Belt One Road" brings huge benefits to Africa
The golden autumn of 2018 in September will surely leave a strong mark in the history of China-Africa relations. The Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation will be held soon. The leaders of China and Africa gathered in Beijing to discuss development plans, and work together to draw a grand blueprint for enhancing the well-being of the Chinese and African people and building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future.
Jointly build the "Belt and Road" to achieve common development
This is an era of turbulence. As the world develops, changes, and adjusts, some people choose unilateralism, trade protectionism, and anti-globalization trends are constantly surging. China is open-minded and chooses to integrate more deeply into the world economy.
In 2013, President Xi Jinping went west to Kazakhstan and south to Indonesia, and proposed the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative. Many countries actively responded. Peter Frankopan, a scholar at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, wrote in his book "The Silk Road: A New World History" that the "One Belt One Road" initiative was proposed for the benefit of the common cause of the world. A golden opportunity for cooperation". The “Belt and Road Initiative” is awakening the Asia-Europe continent and the entire Pacific coast, opening up a whole new world for mankind. The total volume of trade in goods has exceeded 5 trillion U.S. dollars, and foreign direct investment has exceeded 60 billion U.S. dollars, creating more than 200,000 local jobs...
A group of data shows the vigor and vitality of the "Belt and Road" construction. The joint construction of the “Belt and Road” is becoming a Chinese plan for my country to participate in global open cooperation, improve the global economic governance system, promote common global development and prosperity, and promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. As a natural and historical extension of the “Belt and Road” initiative, African countries expect to seize the opportunity to develop together with China and the world.
Cooperation heats up and development results are fruitful
The Chinese nation has always insisted on "one family in the world", advocated the harmony of the people and all nations, and the whole world, and longed for the beautiful world of "travel on the road, the world is for the public". Upholding this belief and responsibility, China uses its own development to help Africa's development, and ultimately achieve mutual benefit, win-win and common development. This is the greatest "righteousness" of China-Africa relations.
At the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2015, President Xi Jinping put forward the “five pillars” to strengthen and consolidate the new positioning of China-Africa relations and the “ten major cooperation plans” in the next three years, to support Africa in cracking down on infrastructure lags and talents. Insufficiency and capital shortage are the three major development bottlenecks, speed up the process of industrialization and agricultural modernization, and realize independent and sustainable development. In the closing year of the implementation of the results of the Johannesburg Summit, people have seen that as of March this year, more than 90% of the US$60 billion in financial support that China has promised to provide have been implemented or made arrangements. Highways, railways, airports, ports, factories, industrial parks... the moats are transformed into thoroughfares, the tidal flats become good harbors, and the deserts are now alive. The construction speed of the project has made the world feel the heat of China-Africa cooperation.
The Yajiro-Djibouti Railway, known as the "Tanzania-Zambia Railway in the New Era", is the first modern electrified railway in Africa. Since its official commercial operation in January this year, the volume of passengers and freight has continued to rise, becoming an "accelerator" for economic and social development along the line.
In 2017, the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway was put into operation, and the construction of the Nei-Ma Railway started. Kenya ushered in a new chapter in railway modernization. "The railway plan that was once considered a'pipe dream' is becoming a reality." Kenyan Minister of Transport and Infrastructure James Macharia said. Data shows that since the start of the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway project, it has created nearly 50,000 jobs for Kenya, trained more than 5,000 professional and technical workers, more than 400 local companies have participated in project subcontracting, and thousands of local supplies, equipment and materials have been supplied. Businesses and service providers participate in the cooperation.
In July this year, the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone, led by Chinese enterprises, opened. At present, more than 20 companies have signed a letter of intent to enter the park, involving commerce, logistics, and processing industries. In the future, companies from automobiles, machinery, building materials, seafood processing, and food processing will be attracted to set up factories in the park. Djibouti’s President Guelleh was full of passion: “From here, we will establish and strengthen ties with China and the entire world.” “The improvement of people’s happiness speaks for itself.” Sukani Yabashi, President of Standard Bank of South Africa, believes, The development process in the past few years has made more and more countries aware of the far-reaching significance of the "Belt and Road" construction.
China and Africa unite and cooperate to shape a better future
18 years ago, under the joint initiative of China and African countries, the China-Africa Cooperation Forum was established to build an effective mechanism and important platform for collective dialogue and pragmatic cooperation between China and Africa.
Over the past 18 years, the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation has become a banner leading China-Africa cooperation, setting a model for South-South cooperation.
At present, the Chinese people are working hard to realize the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, and the African people are working hard to realize the African dream of unity, self-reliance, development and rejuvenation. It has long been the wish of African countries to connect their own development strategies with the construction of the "Belt and Road" and to further integrate into the tide of economic globalization.
At the “Belt and Road” International Cooperation Summit Forum, the governments of Kenya and Ethiopia signed an economic and trade cooperation agreement with the Chinese government. Infrastructure financing cooperation agreement, inland container port yard project loan agreement, energy field cooperation memorandum... each document demonstrates the determination of China and Africa to develop together.
In May of this year, Kenya was approved to join the AIIB, becoming the sixth African country to join the AIIB. A few days ago, China, Senegal and Rwanda signed a memorandum of understanding on the joint construction of the “Belt and Road”, and reached a consensus with Mauritius on signing the “Belt and Road” agreement as soon as possible.
"The Belt and Road Initiative has brought great benefits to African countries." Lema Sembeth, head of the African Economic Research Union, believes that the Africa-China partnership is based on mutual respect and the pursuit of common dreams. In the process of diversification and regional integration, we should actively turn our attention to China."
It is expected that the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation will reach a new consensus on "cooperation and win-win cooperation to build a closer China-Africa community with a shared future", and strengthen the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative, the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the African Union. The 2063 Agenda and the alignment of development strategies of African countries have opened up new horizons for China-Africa cooperation and promoted the common development of China and Africa on a higher quality and higher level. China and Africa unite and cooperate to shape a better future for human society.