China, Africa explore new frontiers in media cooperation

China and Africa adopted a joint declaration at the seventh Forum on China-Africa Media Cooperation in Beijing on Thursday, calling for closer cooperation in news reporting, content production and youth exchanges.

More than 400 participants from China and 45 African countries gathered to discuss content innovation and new technologies in the audiovisual sector, with a focus on artificial intelligence.

"For these past years, many African journalists have been trained here in China, but also in Africa. For instance, for us, AUB, early this year, we had a training on how we can use artificial intelligence to produce content. We have to involve ourselves in this domain to master it and to use it for our development," said Gregoire Ndjaka, CEO of the African Union of Broadcasting (AUB).

The forum unveiled 80 audiovisual cooperation initiatives covering joint production, content exchanges and emerging formats such as short-form dramas.

China and African countries will also continue to showcase selected programs from both sides, bringing more stories to audiences in China and Africa.

"Improving information and communication between these two regions of almost 3 billion people is extremely important. The media and information have become a strategic tool. And on the African continent, we are determined to use the media to deepen our partnership with China," said the African Union's permanent representative to China Alhaji Mohamed Sarjoh Bah.

Since its launch in 2012, the China-Africa Media Cooperation Forum has facilitated more than 200 cooperation projects spanning content production, artificial intelligence and youth exchanges. Ahead of next year's Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit, participants are looking to build on that momentum and further deepen media and audiovisual cooperation.

China, Africa explore new frontiers in media cooperation

A rocket-borne camera captured the thrilling footage of China's first land-based rocket recovery on Wednesday, as the landing legs touched down smoothly on a predesignated desert landing site in northwest China's Gansu Province.

The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket blasted off at 07:35 (Beijing Time) from the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China.

The rocket's first and second stages separated approximately 137 seconds after the liftoff.

The first stage then entered its preset return phase, and completed a series of key maneuvers, including high-altitude flight attitude adjustment, re-entry propulsive deceleration, controlled aerodynamic glide, deceleration burn and landing leg deployment.

The land-based recovery was completed as planned, with the rocket's first stage touching down smoothly at the recovery site in Minqin County of Gansu Province.

The second stage kept flying and sent the onboard Honghu-03 satellite into the preset orbit.

The mission followed the successful sea-based net recovery of the Long March-10B's first stage on July 10.

It marked China's first successful land-based controlled recovery of a rocket's first stage using deployable landing legs, highlighting a major breakthrough in the country's reusable rocket technology.

Rocket-borne camera records moments of China's first rocket recovery on land