CRI听力:10 Major Programs to Boost China-Africa Cooperation

Chinese President Xi Jinping co-chairs the second summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation with South African President Jacob Zuma from Friday to Saturday in South Africa's Johannesburg.

He made a keynote speech at the opening ceremony, announcing the 10 major plans.

"To promote construction of the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, China is willing to implement 10 major cooperation programs with Africa in the coming three years."

President Xi announced that to ensure smooth implementation of the cooperation plans, China will offer 60 billion U.S. dollars of funding support, including 5 billion dollars of free aid and interest-free loans, 35 billion dollars of preferential loans and export credit on more favorable terms, and a China-Africa production capacity cooperation fund with the initial capital of 10 billion dollars.

The programs will focus on helping African countries break the three development bottlenecks of backward infrastructure, talent shortage and inadequate fund, accelerate industrialization and agricultural modernization, and realize independent and sustainable development.

As regards the lack of skilled personnel, the president said China will establish a number of regional vocational education centers and several capacity-building colleges for Africa, train 200 thousand technicians for African countries, and invite 40 thousand of them to study in China.

In order to help Africa accelerate agricultural modernization, China will carry out agricultural development projects in 100 African villages to raise rural living standards, send 30 teams of agricultural experts to Africa, and establish a "10+10" cooperation mechanism between Chinese and African agricultural research institutes.

"China will share experiences of agricultural development with Africa, transfer practical agricultural techniques, and encourage Chinese enterprises to develop large-scale planting, livestock breeding, food storage and processing to increase local employments and farmers' incomes."

The president added that to help the poor harvest caused by El Nino in many African countries, China will provide 1 billion yuan of food aid.

Meanwhile, President Xi has announced plans on poverty reduction and public welfare, public health, people-to-people exchanges, and peace and security.

He also proposed that the new type of China-Africa relations be upgraded to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

"The China-Africa relationship is under the best period in history currently and we should adopt a long-term perspective and stride forwards. Let's make efforts hand in hand, draw together the wisdom and strength of all the 2.4 billion Chinese and African people, and open a new era of the mutual beneficial and common development of China and Africa."

Established in 2000 to promote China-Africa friendship and cooperation, FOCAC groups China, 50 African countries that have established diplomatic ties with China, and the Commission of the African Union. Its last summit took place in 2006 in Beijing.

For CRI, I'm Niu Honglin.