The Eight-Point Plan China Pledged at the FOCAC Beijing Summit

1. Increase assistance to African countries, and by 2009 double the size of its assistance to African countries in 2006.

2. Provide US$3 billion in preferential loans and US$2 billion in preferential export buyer' s credit to African countries in the next three years.

3. Set up the China-Africa Development Fund, the total amount of which will gradually reach US$5 billion, to give encouragement and support to Chinese companies investing in projects in Africa.

4. Help the African Union to build a convention center in order to support African countries in their efforts to strengthen themselves through unity and speed up African integration.

5. Cancel the repayment of interest-free government loans that had become due by the end of 2005 to China by Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPCs) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in Africa that have diplomatic ties with China.

6. Further open the Chinese market to Africa, and increase from 190 to over 440 the number of African export items to China eligible for zero-tariff treatment from the LDCs in Africa having diplomatic relations with China.

7. Set up three to five overseas economic and trade cooperation zones in African countries in the next three years.

8. Train 15,000 professionals for African countries in the next three years; send 100 senior experts in agricultural technology to Africa; set up in Africa 10 demonstration centers of agricultural technology with special features; assist African countries in building 30 hospitals and provide a grant of 300 million yuan to African countries that is used to buy anti-malaria drugs like artemisinin and build 30 centers for prevention and treatment of malaria; dispatch 300 young volunteers to African countries; help African countries set up 100 rural schools; increase the number of Chinese government scholarships for African students from the current 2,000 per year to 4,000 per year by the end of 2008.