BEIJING, Aug. 30,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A report from People's
Daily:
Africa has witnessed a steady
process of regional economic integration in recent years. In
February 2024, the African Union (AU)
launched the Second 10-Year Implementation Plan of Agenda 2063
during the 37th AU Summit.
Mohamed Ould Cheikh Ghazouani,
Mauritanian president and chairperson of the AU for 2024, said that
the AU is committed to unleashing the development potential of the
African continent, promoting regional economic integration,
increasing infrastructure connectivity, and enhancing agricultural
productivity, so as to ensure the smooth implementation of the
second 10-year implementation plan.
The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was officially
established in July 2019 and went
into operation in January 2021. It
aims to facilitate trade and investment and achieve the free
movement of goods, services, and capital across the African
continent through tariff reduction and removal of trade barriers.
It works to create a large single market of over 1.3 billion people
and with a combined gross domestic product of $2.3 trillion.
According to the Economic Development in Africa Report 2023
released by the United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the
AfCFTA offers advantages by easing regional market access and
strengthening production chains across the continent, helping
African domestic industries become more prepared for the global
arena.
As Africa's largest trading
partner, China actively supports
African regional economic integration and the development of the
AfCFTA. Recent years have seen an expansion in both the volume and
quality of trade between China and
the African continent.
According to the China-Africa Trade Index, published for the
first time in 2023, the value of China's imports from and exports to
Africa increased from less than
100 billion yuan ($14 billion) in 2000 to 1.88 trillion yuan in 2022, a cumulative growth
of over 20 times. In 2023, the China-Africa
trade volume reached a record high of $282.1
billion, a year-on-year increase of 1.5 percent. Among them,
China's imports of African nuts,
vegetables, flowers and fruits increased by 130 percent, 32
percent, 14 percent, and 7 percent year-on-year, respectively.
Meanwhile, Chinese exports of new energy vehicles, lithium
batteries, and photovoltaic products to Africa increased by 291 percent, 109 percent,
and 57 percent year-on-year, respectively, strongly supporting
Africa's green transition.
China and the AfCFTA
Secretariat have jointly established an expert group for economic
cooperation, aiming to enhance the sharing of policies and
experiences to facilitate trade and investment. Both sides have
been deepening cooperation in areas such as infrastructure, trade
and finance, industrial investment, talent training, and capacity
building, providing continuous support for Africa's regional economic integration.
Over the past decade, China has
provided Africa with development
support as much as it can and has been involved in the construction
of over 6,000 kilometers of railways, 6,000 kilometers of roads,
and more than 80 large power facilities in Africa.
Among them, the 2Africa submarine cable project, invested and
developed by China Mobile International and other companies,
encircles the African continent with a total length of over 45,000
kilometers. Once completed, it will become the longest submarine
cable in the world. This cable project will deliver much-needed
internet capacity and reliability in Africa, promote digital transformation in
sectors such as healthcare, education, and finance, and provide
digital support for the regional economic integration of the
African continent.
In August 2023, at the
China-Africa Leaders' Dialogue, China proposed to launch the Initiative on
Supporting Africa's Industrialization, the Plan for China
Supporting Africa's Agricultural Modernization, and the Plan for
China-Africa Cooperation on Talent Development, to help
Africa bring its integration and
modernization into a fast track.
According to an article published in the African Leadership
Magazine, large-scale infrastructure projects, like the building of
roads, trains, ports, and power plants, are common in China. These investments support economic
growth and regional integration by filling the infrastructural
deficit in Africa.
James Mwangi, chief executive
officer of Equity Group Holdings based in Kenya, said that China is an important source of investment for
Africa and the largest export
market for African countries. This strong support has enabled
African nations to participate in global trade.
He said Africa welcomes
advanced financial payment tools from China, which can help the continent achieve
financial integration and inject new momentum into global financial
infrastructure connectivity.
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SOURCE People's Daily