True friendship transcends time and distance, built on sincerity and mutual respect on an equal footing. Such is the partnership between China and Africa, which, in an era of shifting global dynamics, has remained steadfast and stands out as a shining example of Global South cooperation.
The skeptical may disagree, but a deeper dive into the past and the present of this partnership will shed some light on why the African people have embraced cooperation with China.
Unlike the Western countries that have sought to exploit Africa for immediate profits and self-serving agenda, China has gone into cooperation with Africa for long-term common development.
Build connectivity for greater development in Africa
As a Chinese saying goes, "To get rich, road and bridge." Knowing full well the critical importance of infrastructure to national development, China has made significant efforts to help African countries build and upgrade key infrastructure, including over 200,000 kilometers of optical fiber, nearly 100,000 kilometers of roads, more than 10,000 kilometers of railways, nearly 1,000 bridges, and about 100 ports. The list runs long.
Notably, connectivity projects built with Chinese assistance such as the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway, and the Benguela Railway have formed the backbone of Africa's railway network. Projects such as Nigeria's Lekki Deep Sea Port, Gabon's Port Gentil, Cameroon's Kribi Deepwater Port, and airport expansions in Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Kenya have significantly improved the throughput capacity of African ports and airports. All this has laid the groundwork for the continent's economic takeoff.
Help enhance Africa's capacity building for development
"Give people fish and you feed them for a day. Teach them how to fish and you feed them for a lifetime."
Being Africa's largest trading partner and the leading developing country in terms of FDI in the continent, China has placed a particular emphasis on helping African countries with capacity building for long-term, self-sustained development.
China's cooperation with Africa has not only spurred economic growth and created more local jobs in Africa, it has, more importantly, helped African nations better integrate into the global supply chain, move up the global value chain, and foster a more stable economic environment and a diversified market on the continent, adding to the momentum of Africa's modernization drive. As pointed out by Hanan Morsy, Chief Economist at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, China-Africa economic and trade cooperation is creating a robust internal momentum for development in Africa.
Some in the West accuse China of conducting "debt trap diplomacy" in Africa. This could not be further from the truth. In fact, China is the largest contributor to the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative, accounting for more than 40 percent of the total debt relief. A report by the British non-governmental organization "Debt Justice" shows that African countries owe three times more debt to private Western financial institutions than to China, and are charged double the interest. If there is a "debt trap," it's definitely not created by China.
Partner with Africa in exploring the path forward
Both members of the Global South, China and African nations share similar historical experiences of fighting for national independence and liberation and the common goal of delivering economic prosperity to their people. It's only natural that as Africans chart their own course to development, they look to Beijing for inspiration and have found a reliable partner in China in this endeavor.
China's success story debunks the myth that westernization is the only path to modernization. It provides an alternative for developing countries to realize their dreams by finding a development path suitable to their national conditions.
Firmly supporting African countries and people in exploring their own development paths, China has actively engaged in experience sharing with African friends in governance and poverty alleviation, among other things, in pursuit of joint progress toward modernization.
A bright future for China-Africa cooperation
As leaders from China and Africa gather in Beijing next week for another summit of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), expectations are high for another milestone in China-Africa relationship. This partnership is a testament to the power of solidarity and the potential for developing countries to achieve modernization in their own way. Their shared commitment to equality, mutual respect, and win-win cooperation has laid a solid foundation for sustainable development. By leveraging their respective strengths and learning from each other, China and Africa will usher in an even brighter future for their cooperation.