Priority Areas of China-Africa Cooperation for the Next Three Years Announced by the Chinese Government at the Fifth FOCAC Ministerial Conference

1. Expanding cooperation in investment and financing to support sustainable development in Africa. To meet this goal, China will provide African countries with a US$20 billion credit line to be spent on developing infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing and small and medium-sized enterprises.

2. Continuing to scale up its assistance to Africa so as to benefit more African people. As part of expanding its aid to Africa, the Chinese government will build more agricultural technology demonstration centers, as necessary, to help African countries increase their production capacities. China will implement the "African Talents Program" to train 30,000 African personnel in various sectors, offer 18,000 government scholarships, and build cultural and vocational skills training facilities in African countries. China and Africa will deepen their cooperation in the health sector, step up high level exchanges in health-related fields and hold a China-Africa high-level health development workshop when it becomes appropriate to do so. China will send 1,500 medical workers to Africa, while continuing to run the "Brightness Action" campaign in Africa to provide free treatment for cataract patients. It will also help African countries enhance their capacity building in meteorological infrastructure and forest protection and management. The Chinese side will continue to carry out well-drilling and water supply projects in Africa to provide safe drinking water for African people.

3. Supporting the African integration process and helping Africa enhance its capacity for overall development. To support Africa in these areas, China will establish a partnership with Africa that is focused on transnational and trans-regional infrastructure development, support related project planning and feasibility studies and encourage established Chinese companies and financial institutions to take part in transnational and trans-regional infrastructure development in Africa. China will also help African countries improve their customs and commodity inspection facilities to enhance intra-regional trade facilitation.

4. Strengthening people-to-people friendships to lay a solid foundation of public support for enhancing China-Africa common development. In this area, China proposes to carry out the "China-Africa people-to-people friendship action" to support and promote exchanges and cooperation between non-governmental organizations, women and youth from the two sides. Also, a China-Africa Press Exchange Center will be set up in China. The two sides will promote exchanges and visits between Chinese and African journalists and press professionals and support correspondent exchanges between their media organizations. China will also continue to implement the China-Africa Joint Research and Exchange Plan by sponsoring 100 programs for research, exchange and cooperation between academic institutions and scholars of the two sides.

5. Promoting African peace and stability, and creating a secure environment for the development of African countries. To foster security on the African continent, China will launch the "Initiative on China-Africa Cooperative Partnership for Peace and Security," deepen cooperation with the AU and African countries in areas related to peace and security in Africa, provide financial support for AU peacekeeping missions in Africa and the development for the African Standby Force, and train more AU peacekeepers and officials in peace and security affairs.