Relations With African Countries

To strengthen friendly cooperation with African countries is the cornerstone of China's independent foreign policy of peace. China is ready to carry on this traditional friendship to forge a new type of strategic partnership with Africa featuring political equality and mutual trust, economic win-win cooperation and cultural exchange.

China and Africa conducted ever more frequent consultation and cooperation in international affairs in 2005. China supported the leading role of the African Union in African affairs, the implementation of the New Partnership of African Development, and Africa's reasonable requirements in multilateral organizations such as in the WTO and the UN. Many African countries rendered firm support for China's reunification and the Chinese Government's adoption of the Anti-Secession Law. In October 2005, China resumed diplomatic relations with Senegal. To date, 47 African countries have established diplomatic ties with China.

China is the biggest developing country in the world, whereas Africa is the continent with the greatest concentration of developing countries. Given their evident economic complementarities, cooperation between China and Africa holds huge potential. Trade between China and African countries is growing rapidly. Bilateral trade volume soared from US$12.11 million in the early 1950s to US$10.5 billion in 2000, US$29.4 billion in 2004 and nearly US$40 billion in 2005. In order to facilitate the access of African commodities to the Chinese market, China exempted tariff on 190 categories of goods from 28 least developed African countries as of January 1, 2005, a policy that more than doubled their exports of such products to China. In addition, Chinese enterprises have made accelerated efforts to invest in Africa. According to official statistics, from January to October 2005, Chinese companies' paid-in investment in Africa reached US$175 million, accounting for one 10th of China's total investment in Africa over the past decades. Investments covered a wide range of areas such as trade, manufacturing, resource development, transportation, agriculture and comprehensive processing of agricultural products.

The year 2006 is a memorable one in the history of China-Africa relations. On January 12, the Chinese Government issued China's African Policy, its first ever policy paper on Africa. The paper reviewed the history of friendly relations between China and Africa over the past more than 50 years, affirmed Africa's role under the new circumstances and clarified the direction and aim of China's African policy. The Beijing Summit and the Third Ministerial Meeting of the China-Africa Forum will be held in Beijing in the fall of 2006 when Chinese and African leaders gather to devise the blueprint for China-Africa friendly cooperation.