China says to support Africa in finding suitable development path

Chinese Ambassador to Ghana Sun Baohong delivers a speech at a conference on China-Africa relations in Accra, capital of Ghana, on July 4, 2017. China will not be a proselytizer and instead supports Africa's pursuit of development paths suiting its own situations, Chinese Ambassador to Ghana Sun Baohong said Tuesday. [Photo/Xinhua]

ACCRA - China will not be a proselytizer and instead supports Africa's pursuit of development paths suiting its own situations, Chinese Ambassador to Ghana Sun Baohong said Tuesday.

Sun made the remarks as African development experts met in Ghana at the start of a conference on China-Africa Joint Research and Exchange Program on Africa-Sino Relations.

The two-day conference, organized by the Institute of Democratic Governance (IDEG), is expected to discuss how Africa and China can cooperate in terms of technical capacity and resource capacity enhancement to boost Africa's development and create a win-win partnership for both sides.

Sun said China's development collaborations with Africa are without ulterior motives.

"China will further enhance cooperation with Africa in areas such as digital economy, artificial intelligence, renewable energy, and environmental protection. But China will never act as a proselytizer, nor attach political strings; never interfere in domestic affairs of African countries nor impose its will upon Africa, and China will never issue an empty check," Sun said.

She urged African countries to diversify their export base and pursue export processing in order to strengthen their economies.

"It is my hope that in the near future Africa will shift the model of exporting raw materials and establish a complete industrial chain. People can see more goods made by China and Africa jointly in the international market," the ambassador said.

In his opening remarks, Vice-President of Ghana Mahamudu Bawumia hailed China's remarkable development story.

He pointed out that China's "push" has been based on their vision, on their "going global" strategy, and the discipline and determination to execute their plan.

Africa's cooperation with China and all of its development partners, Bawumia said, should also be based on the continent's own vision for lifting its people out of poverty.