The cooperation between China and African countries is based on mutual interest and respect, further strengthened by frameworks such as the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), said African Union (AU) Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
In an exclusive interview with China Media Group (CMG) in Addis Ababa, aired on Friday, Youssouf said the China-Africa bond rests on a solid foundation.
"We feel that the kind of relationship that the African continent has with China is based on mutual interest, respect and also mutual understanding. This is something very important for the African member countries of the African Union because we feel that the era of a hegemonic kind of relationship, the era of dominance has ended up in the decolonization of our countries. So the African Union member countries have always been looking for that kind of partnership and relationship, and we found it with China. China, over the past 30 years, has been a miracle of development, a very inspiring showcase for all of us. That's why the African member countries have always tried to create that environment of respectful relationship with China," he said.
Youssouf highlighted the fruitful outcomes of the FOCAC 2024 Beijing Summit, noting that as a senior diplomat he has witnessed firsthand the framework’s vital role in advancing China-Africa relations.
"For the past 26 years I have been attending all FOCAC meeting because I've been in in diplomacy now for more than three decades. And I think that this is a continuity of the way we make our Africa-China relationship evolve. And at each stage there is a particular sector for interest. We have been building our partnership on infrastructure development for many years. China has been investing in our energy infrastructure, railway, ports, logistics, etc. And then we move to energy development, grids and so on and so forth. Now we're focusing on people to people's relationship. We need to see the impact of all those investments for so many years. We need to see it in the well-being of our people. China has been achieving miracle figures in terms of uplifting millions of people out of poverty. We need to replicate that on the continent. We need to see hundreds of millions of Africans be uplifted and extracted from poverty," he said.
Th official also drew similarities between China’s 15th five-year plan with the AU's Agenda 2063, pledging to deepen the collaboration between the two long-term development plans.
"It's very important also that we look into the 15th five-year Chinese plan because this is a framework that will also help us to understand what is the best path towards achieving those goals. We have in on our continent, what you call the 2nd 10-year plan. We are looking for creating that sense of alignment between these two plans, and bridging the gaps or building bridges between these two plans will help us certainly to put the right diagnosis on the problems that we have and also promoting trade between China and Africa on a balanced way," he said.
AU chief highlights mutual respect, FOCAC outcomes in China-Africa cooperation
