Co seeking Development and Sharing the Future - Observation of the 3rd China Africa Economic and Trade Expo in Changsha, China

In the midsummer season, the enthusiasm for economic and trade cooperation between China and Africa is soaring along with the temperature in Changsha.

More than 1000 representatives from 68 countries and regions attended the opening ceremony; Exhibitors and exhibits increased by 70% and 165.9% respectively compared to the previous edition; A batch of new collaborative projects, agreements, and achievements will be released in a centralized manner

Since its opening in Changsha on June 29th, the Third China Africa Economic and Trade Expo has received much attention and highlights, accumulating momentum for promoting China Africa economic and trade cooperation.

Stepping to a new level: The platform's influence is greater

On May 12, 2023, local farmers harvested rice in a high-yield demonstration field for hybrid rice at the Africa branch of the China National Hybrid Rice Engineering and Technology Research Center in the town of Mahiqi near the capital of Madagascar, Tananarivo. Shen Jizhong

Madagascar Hybrid Rice Project, Djibouti International Free Trade Zone, Kilimall E-commerce Platform... This Expo is the first to set up a high-quality "the Belt and Road" achievement exhibition jointly built by China and Africa, attracting a large number of visitors.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the proposal to jointly build the "the Belt and Road" initiative, the policy concept of sincerity, sincerity and sincerity towards Africa, and the correct concept of righteousness and benefit. Over the past 10 years, China Africa economic and trade cooperation has achieved fruitful results. The Third China Africa Economic and Trade Expo is like a window, showcasing the vigorous vitality of China Africa economic and trade cooperation to the outside world.

On June 30th, at the Changsha International Convention and Exhibition Center, visitors visited the China Africa Economic and Trade Expo. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Sihan

Inside the African enterprise and commodity exhibition hall, there is a bustling and bustling crowd. A burst of African drumbeats sounded, and African boy Ama from the Republic of Mali enthusiastically drumbed, attracting onlookers. This is his third time participating in the China Africa Economic and Trade Expo, bringing products from his hometown to the exhibition. "In the past two days, we have negotiated many orders, and every time we participate in the China Africa Economic and Trade Expo, we have gained a lot."

On June 29th, visitors visited the Congo National Pavilion at the China Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation Innovation Demonstration Park. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Zeguo

Tiffany, the head of a coffee company from Congo, participated in the exhibition for the first time. Faced with a flood of consultants, she happily said, "At the expo, I learned about many Sino African cooperation projects, met many Chinese friends, got closer, and had full confidence."

As the largest economic and trade cooperation platform under the framework of the Forum on China Africa Cooperation, the China Africa Economic and Trade Expo has been held every two years since 2019, and its popularity has continued to rise.

On June 29th, the third China Africa Economic and Trade Expo opened at the Changsha International Conference Center. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Sihan

Compared to previous editions, the platform of this expo has a greater influence, with more and more beautiful exhibits and a significant increase in participating countries. More than 1000 representatives from 68 countries and regions attended the opening ceremony; 1590 exhibits from 29 countries participated, an increase of 165.9% compared to the previous edition; There are 1500 exhibitors, an increase of 70% compared to the previous edition.

In the main exhibition hall of Changsha International Convention and Exhibition Center, which covers an area of 100000 square meters, Kenyan roses, Ugandan coffee, South African wine, Mali tree bark paintings... a dazzling array of African landscapes complement Chinese brands.

This is the outdoor exhibition area of Changsha International Convention and Exhibition Center taken on June 29th. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Zhenhai

Appreciating the fashion show of luggage, conducting various product trade negotiations... In addition to the exhibition, nearly 40 various activities are held simultaneously. Among them, for the first time, a high-end event hosted by national ministries and institutions was set up. For the first time, forums and seminars were held focusing on traditional Chinese medicine cooperation, quality infrastructure, women's exchanges, vocational education, and other fields. For the first time, a trade negotiation conference was held around characteristic light industry products and textile clothing.

On June 29th, the China Africa Cooperation Forum on Hygiene and Plant Health was held at the Changsha International Conference Center. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Zhenhai

At the China African Countries Health and Plant Health Cooperation Forum, a series of policy measures to facilitate the export of African agricultural products to China have been launched. Malawi's Minister of Agriculture, Samuel Daliso Cavale, said that the Expo has built an important bridge to promote trade, cultural exchanges, and institutional innovation for the upgrading and upgrading of China Africa trade.

The centralized release of a batch of new cooperation projects, agreements, and achievements sends a positive signal to the outside world of China Africa economic and trade cooperation.

The 2023 Report on China Africa Economic and Trade Relations released by the International Trade and Economic Cooperation Research Institute of the Ministry of Commerce shows that China has maintained its position as Africa's largest trading partner for 14 consecutive years. In 2022, the trade volume between China and Africa further increased to 282 billion US dollars, reaching a historic high.

Zhang Wei, Vice President of the International Trade and Economic Cooperation Research Institute of the Ministry of Commerce, stated that China Africa economic and trade cooperation has strong complementarity and a solid foundation. China and Africa will work together and enter a new stage of development in improving and upgrading economic and trade cooperation.

Gathering new momentum: continuously expanding cooperation areas

Smart construction site visualization display board, garden style waste incineration power plant... The sand table model of China Construction Second Engineering Bureau's booth, intertwined with technology and green elements, has attracted the attention of many African merchants. Jacini, a foreign employee of China Construction Second Engineering Bureau from Algeria, skillfully switches between English and French and introduces relevant projects to African clients.

Africa is the second largest contract engineering market in China. In 2022, China signed new contracts for non engineering contracting exceeding 73.2 billion US dollars, achieving a turnover of 37.84 billion US dollars. The contracted projects are mainly concentrated in the three major industries of transportation construction, general construction, and power engineering construction, effectively promoting economic recovery and improving people's livelihoods in Africa.

"Chinese enterprises, with their technological and operational advantages in green development and digital transformation, can closely cooperate with Africa to accelerate the cultivation of new economic growth points in emerging fields." Fang Qiuchen, President of the China Association of Foreign Contractors, said that infrastructure construction in Africa is transforming and upgrading from traditional fields to the direction of "new infrastructure".

This is a photo taken on July 21, 2022 at the Malawi National Data Center in Blantyre, Malawi. Shen Jizhong

The Mauritius Ping An City project significantly improves emergency response efficiency; The Malawi Data Center is a key component of Malawi's ongoing "Digital Future" initiative; The Ethiopia Riverside Green Development Project can not only drive economic development, but also optimize the environment and improve people's lives

It is not difficult to see from this expo that the field of China Africa economic and trade cooperation is constantly expanding and deepening, from traditional trade and engineering construction to emerging fields such as digital, green, aerospace, and finance.

In the AMI solution demonstration area of Weisheng Holdings Limited, an advanced power network processing system has attracted numerous inquiries from African merchants.

"We can provide more efficient products and technical solutions for people's livelihood issues such as water and electricity in Africa," Huang Hui, the regional sales manager of Weisheng Africa, told reporters. She hopes to continue to use technology and products as a medium to promote more and deeper cooperation, and help the African region build green and energy-saving power systems.

The element of "digital economy" is the highlight of this expo. Chinese enterprises are actively participating in the construction of digital infrastructure in Africa, promoting the rapid development of industries such as e-commerce, mobile payments, media and entertainment in Africa, and continuously gathering new momentum for bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

On June 30th, at the China Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation Innovation Demonstration Park, anchors from Africa livestreamed sales. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Chen Zeguo

"The rise of live streaming sales and other methods in China can provide consumers with a visual display of high-quality African products and quickly achieve product delivery, which is a powerful tool for South Africa to connect with the global consumer market. After experiencing live streaming sales during the Africa Good Things Online Shopping Festival, South African Ambassador to China Xie Shengwen said that he hopes the two countries can deepen cooperation in digital economy, e-commerce, and other areas, and accelerate the mutual exchange of high-quality products between both sides through online live streaming, online shopping malls, and other means.".

Co drawing a new blueprint: Continuously unleashing development potential

The exhibit brought by Guo Lin, the founder of Yihao Media, is very unique: a "East African Enterprise Directory" that includes information from nearly 80 Chinese and African enterprises. This Chinese resident in Rwanda is attending the conference for the second time. She conducted a survey before the conference and learned that the company has a high investment enthusiasm, but lacks understanding of relevant market information. "Africa has great development potential, and a directory of enterprises that can be circulated is of great value to both Chinese and African enterprises."

Chen Wei, Sales Manager of Xiangneng Hualei Optoelectronics Co., Ltd., was attracted by this directory. The LED lighting products produced by her company have been sold to the West African market, and she hopes to further expand into the East African market through this exhibition.

At the expo, many exhibitors and professional visitors expressed that with the increasingly perfect mechanism of China Africa economic and trade cooperation, the cooperation between the two sides in the industrial chain, supply chain, value chain and other aspects has become closer, and the development potential is accelerating.

On May 23, 2023, in Nairobi, Kenya, Chinese train driver Jiang Liping and Kenyan student Horace walked past a Mombasa Nairobi railway locomotive with the slogan "Connecting the Country, Towards Prosperity" printed on it. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Wang Guansen

The front door of Zhongchi International Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd. is like a city. In recent years, more and more Chinese companies have invested in Africa, and there is a strong demand for improving customs clearance efficiency. Meanwhile, Zhongchi International has successively opened "double clearance to door" services in Nigeria, Cameroon, and Angola, helping Chinese companies complete domestic pickup, sorting, packaging, LCL, and overseas storage, distribution, and delivery, achieving "door-to-door" supply chain services.

"Now, Chinese companies only need to hand over their goods to us domestically, and there's no need to worry about customs clearance and delivery!" said Zhang Lijuan, the head of the marketing department at Zhongchi International. Through the expo, we can cooperate with more companies, deepen supply chain services, and help Chinese companies invest and develop in Africa faster and better.

The sincerity and measures of mutual benefit and seeking common development have been heard to be implemented at this expo——

Forum on Cooperation in Traditional Chinese Medicine between China and Africa, signing of cooperation projects in traditional Chinese medicine. Li Xiaosong, Director of the Hunan Provincial Health Commission, said that he looks forward to further deepening China Africa counterpart medical cooperation through both "blood transfusion" and "hematopoiesis", including the internationalization of the traditional Chinese medicine industry.

On October 31, 2022, in a village in Mutim Buzi, Bujumbura Rural Province, Burundi, local villagers took a group photo with the satellite television receiver installed in the "Ten Thousand Villages Connect" project of China aided Burundi. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Dong Jianghui

The China Africa Infrastructure Cooperation Forum held a signing ceremony for infrastructure cooperation projects between China and Africa, covering 19 contracts signed on site in the fields of China's engineering contracting and investment in Africa. The total amount of signed projects exceeded 2.9 billion US dollars.

Preliminary predictions indicate that there will be 218 cooperation projects to be signed and coordinated during the conference, with a total amount of 19.1 billion US dollars.

The land of Sanxiang is as passionate as fire. This year's Expo provides a good platform for communication, discussion and cooperation between China and Africa, witnessing the renewed warmth of sincere friendship between China and Africa, and helping China Africa's economic and trade cooperation reach a new level.

Text and video reporter: Ruth Eric

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