ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Experts and officials, attending a China-Africa relations-themed seminar, on Thursday emphasized the need to strengthen China-Africa cooperation across various areas.
The high-level seminar that was held virtually under the theme "China and African Union (AU) at 20th Years: A New Starting Point through Shared Future" was organized by the AU and the Chinese Mission to the AU.
The seminar brought together officials from the AU, members of African and Chinese diplomatic communities, and experts drawn from African and Chinese think tanks.
Emile Rwagasana, deputy chief of Staff, Cabinet of the Deputy Chairperson of the AU Commission, emphasized the historic and ever-growing China-Africa relations, which are characterized by mutual respect.
"China has achieved remarkable development progress in recent years, with an unprecedented reduction in poverty. I commend its (China's) commitment to sharing its successes through different initiatives, such as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)," he said.
Noting Africa's development over the past decades, Rwagasana emphasized the need to further deepen China-Africa cooperation toward creating a better future for their people.
"Together, China and Africa can unite their combined potential for peaceful, durable, and equitable progress to benefit mankind," he said.
Rwagasana further emphasized China's important role in realizing Africa's quest for development as he noted that China is Africa's largest trading partner, bilateral creditor, and a crucial source of infrastructure.
Experts and scholars, drawn from African and Chinese think tanks attending the seminar, emphasized the need to strengthen the already fruitful Sino-Africa cooperation across a range of sectors.
The seminar, which marked the China-AU 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations as a new starting point through a shared future, further stressed the need to expand the partnership to a new level.
The seminar mainly focused on three thematic areas: the China-Africa governance experience exchanges and capacity building of African countries; China-Africa cooperation on agriculture and poverty reduction; and the China-Africa economic cooperation on trade, investment and finance.
Hu Changchun, head of the Chinese Mission to the AU, said such a high-level seminar can significantly contribute to improving China-Africa cooperation in the new era and building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future.
Hu, in particular, underscored successful China-Africa cooperation under the BRI in terms of promoting infrastructure and economic development in Africa.
He further singled out the China-aided AU headquarters in Addis Ababa and the imminent future headquarters of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as practical examples of the blossoming China-AU relations.
Hu expressed China's willingness to work closely with the African continent and the AU to deliver greater benefits to the peoples of both sides.
"We are willing to work closely with the African Union to strengthen the alignment of Chinese development strategies with AU's Agenda 2063 so as to jointly achieve high-quality cooperation and development," Hu said.
Experts and policymakers, attending the high-level seminar, emphasized the positive outcomes of the recently held 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China to positively contribute to the already blossoming China-Africa relations toward building high-quality cooperation.
They further underscored the enormous China-Africa potential toward the successful implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Agreement so as to enhance African countries' potential in international trade. ■