At the opening of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit in Beijing, Xi also promised that the country will invest at least 70 billion yuan in the African bloc.
Xi said the country is "ready to deepen cooperation" with the mainland in the economic domain. Relations between China and Africa are going through the “best period in history”, he assured. “China and Africa must remain united and defend their legitimate rights at a time when the world is undergoing unprecedented changes,” the Chinese leader added.
Xi announced 30 infrastructure projects and renewed his promise to increase agricultural imports from Africa, an intention he had already expressed at the previous edition of FOCAC, in Dakar, in 2021.
The leader also emphasized that China will help Africa “promote ecological modernization, green development and the transition to low-carbon technology.”
Xi also said China will donate 1 billion yuan in military aid to Africa, as well as train 6,000 military personnel.
China is the African continent's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching 167.8 billion dollars in the first half of the year, according to the official Chinese press.
In total, 50 leaders from African countries and the UN Secretary-General, Portuguese António Guterres, are present at the summit, according to the Chinese press. One list includes the president of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, the president of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi, and the prime minister of Cape Verde, Ulisses Correia e Silva.
On Wednesday, Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang announced during a meeting with Correia e Silva that China will donate US$28.5 million to Cape Verde.
As part of Nyusi's six-day state visit to the Asian country, Mozambique signed an agreement on Wednesday that will allow it to export pigeon peas, macadamia nuts and cashew nuts to China.
On the opposite side, one of the most notable absences was that of João Lourenço. The president of the Republic of Angola was not present at the forum, despite Angola being China's largest economic partner on the African continent and China being the country's largest creditor.
According to Boston University, Angola accounts for more than 45 billion dollars, between 2000 and 2022, in loans and financing from China for 258 projects, mainly in energy and transport.
Luanda is represented in Beijing by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António.
The summit, the largest diplomatic meeting organized in China since the pandemic, ends Friday.
