By S. Idowu Ola
The year 2007 started on a very promising note for China-Africa
cooperation. Just before the start of the new year, a wide-body
Airbus A330 left Capital International Airport in Beijing for
Muritala Muhammed Airport in Lagos, Nigeria.
It was the start of direct flights between China and Africa, a
significant step in the 50-year China-Africa bilateral
relationship.
The China Southern Airlines, now operates three flights a week
between Beijing and Lagos, with a brief stopover in Dubai, United
Arab Emirates. The other operational direct routes between Africa
and China are Addis Ababa-Beijing by Ethiopian Airlines and
Johannesburg-Beijing by South African Airways.
I remember encouraging a colleague to seek academic work in
China. She quickly brushed the idea aside on the basis of long
hours of stopovers and flight changes from Lagos to Beijing. The
new direct flight not only saves time but is economical.
This week, President Hu Jintao is in Africa for state visits to
Cameroon, Liberia, Sudan, Zambia, Namibia, South Africa, Mozambique
and Seychelles.
His visit is expected to lead to more bilateral talks and
agreements and yield more concrete projects to fulfill the eight
measures he spelled out in his address to the Beijing Summit of the
Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in November.
Last year, President Hu used his state visits to Morocco,
Nigeria and Kenya to consolidate China's five-point African policy
of sincere friendship, equality, solidarity and cooperation, common
development and being forward looking.
China has indeed been faithful to this policy since 1996. The
Chinese government has been providing African countries with loans
with government subsidized interest to encourage Chinese
enterprises to cooperate with African enterprises in foreign aid
projects with joint equity.
During the first FOCAC in 2000, China announced that it was
planning to reduce or cancel debts amounting to 10 billion yuan
(US$1.3 billion) owed by the heavily indebted poor and least
developed African countries over the next two years.
China also announced plans to establish an African Human
Resources Development Fund to help African countries train more
professionals in different disciplines.
Many of these packages were renewed during the Third Beijing
Summit of FOCAC attended by 48 African heads of state or their
deputies. A new type of strategic partnership between China and
Africa was also announced at the summit. It is to be based on
"political equality and mutual trust, economic win-win cooperation
and cultural exchanges".
In return for these Chinese government commitments to Africa,
China has been drawing on Africa's natural resources and markets as
well as cooperation in international affairs.
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In 2005 two-way trade between China and Africa amounted to about
US$40 billion, an increase of about 400 percent over that of 2000.
Africa's resources and market potential coupled with Chinese
know-how have helped the modernization of both China and
Africa.
Almost all African presidents and prime ministers have visited
China in the last 10 years and many top-level Chinese delegations
have reciprocated. More than 800 Chinese-funded companies currently
operate in Africa with a total direct investment of more than US$1
billion, according to China's official record.
The potential for further development of China-Africa relations
in 2007 and beyond is even greater. The new China Southern flights
between Beijing and Lagos will not only help the several thousand
Chinese working in West Africa and West African businessmen flying
to China but also diplomats, sportspeople, journalists, students,
academics and tourists. According to a Chinese analyst, "the route
may not prove profitable in the short term, but will be significant
for exploring the market".
As a further step to direct air links, the Chinese government or
corporations should also open Chinese language and cultural centers
in strategic African cities. This will facilitate the growth of
African connections with Chinese culture and markets.
During the second Conference of Chinese and African
Entrepreneurs as part of the third FOCAC meeting, Africans welcomed
China's advances in enhancing trade.
It is now left to the two to actualize their dreams. In
particular African entrepreneurs should make use of the Chinese
government's promises to open up its market to investment. A
healthy sustainable relationship should not be based on export and
import alone. Africans should be able to offer services to Chinese
on Chinese soil as many Chinese entrepreneurs are presently doing
in Africa.
The eight-nation tour of Africa by President Hu is expected to
bring with it many more fruitful bilateral talks and
agreements.
African governments have opened their doors widely to Chinese
investors mainly on the basis of trust and hope. They expect their
relationship to be mutually beneficial in both the short and long
term, unlike Africa's relationship with the West.
Chinese involvement, especially in troubled areas of Africa,
should not only be seen as transparent but should help ensure peace
on the continent.
In Nigeria and other parts of Africa there is growing concern
about many fake products coming from China and cases of dumping.
Africa needs firm commitments from China to attack and stop this
menace.
One also expects that in the long run the several hundred
Chinese companies now operating in Africa will transfer their
technical and managerial skills to African workers to enable them
to take over the industries completely. This will ensure the
credibility of China, strengthen cooperation, and enable China to
move to greater heights and responsibilities.
For Sino-Afro relations the hopes are high and the potential
huge.
S. Idowu Ola is a faculty member of agriculture with
Department of Animal Science, Obafemi Awolowo University,
Nigeria.
(China Daily January 30, 2007)
