Golden era for China-Africa relations ahead: China Daily editorial

China has proved to be a true and trustworthy friend of Africa, and the country remains committed to helping the continent address the major issues it is facing in its efforts to shake off poverty and realize economic and social development.

At the China-Africa Leaders' Dialogue on Thursday, China announced a number of new measures to promote China-Africa cooperation and help the continent with its economic integration and modernization efforts.

To help promote the stability, development and prosperity of the continent and improve the well-being of the African people, China's latest pledges of assistance are aimed at helping Africa with the three key tasks of transforming its manufacturing sector, securing food self-sufficiency and training high-caliber talents.

The concrete steps President Xi Jinping proposed include an initiative to support Africa's industrialization, as well as a plan to support Africa's agricultural modernization and a plan to support bilateral talent development.

The industrialization initiative will channel more assistance, investment and financing to the continent. Under the agricultural plan, China will help Africa expand its grain planting and encourage Chinese companies to increase agricultural investment in Africa; while the talent plan seeks to train 500 principals and high-caliber teachers for vocational colleges in Africa every year, as well as 10,000 technical personnel with both Chinese language and vocational skills.

Despite the vicissitudes of the times, China-Africa ties have emerged tall and strong. China has been Africa's largest trading partner over the past decade and the largest destination for African exports; statistics indicate bilateral trade grew 11 percent to $282 billion in 2022.

But in a world undergoing transformation and turbulence, both sides need stronger solidarity and cooperation more than ever.

The developing world needs to join hands so as to safeguard their common interests and development space and amplify their voice in global governance.

As members of the Global South, China and African countries share similar views on today's world order and global governance. During the dialogue on Thursday, China reiterated its pledge to support the African Union to gain full membership of the G20 and to support special arrangements for UN Security Council reform to meet Africa's modernization aspiration.

Building upon the current strong momentum in bilateral ties paves the way for a golden era of China-Africa cooperation.