Insights | African scholar: By strengthening trade cooperation and cultural exchanges, China-Africa builds win-win relationship

By Wang Gaofei, Chen Caixia

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has offered flexible financing options for key projects in Ethiopia and has introduced practical mechanisms, technologies and skills to local workers, noted Endalkachew Sime, former Ethiopian Minister of Planning and Development, PhD Candidate at the Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development of Peking University when he took an interview with China News Network.

From September 4 to 6, the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) was held in Beijing, China. Concerning how to further advance China-Africa cooperation, Sime told China News Network that China plays a leading role in accelerating development, sharing valuable experience and providing financial resources for projects in Global South countries.

Raising the example of a flavored juice processing enterprise jointly established by Ethiopia and China, Sime said that it adds value to local agricultural products that were previously imported. He said that such joint ventures provide Ethiopia with alternative import options and help save foreign currency for the country.

He emphasized that such Africa-China joint ventures enable local workers to continuously acquire relevant mechanisms, technologies and diverse skills, pushing these workers to“particularly think about what can be done for those agricultural products that local villagers are consuming”.

“The private sector is a very critical element in the future of Africa-China cooperation. You find efficiency, productivity, competitiveness in the private sector.” Sime believed Africa-China cooperation should prioritize the exchange of knowledge and information to fully leverage financial, natural resources for development. By fostering brainstorming and continuously generating new ideas, Africa-China future partnership is definitely going to be better.

“Compared to other engagements, China's Belt and Road Initiative has provided local African companies greater freedom to do choices,”Sime stated. He emphasized that Africa-China cooperation in infrastructure is particularly noteworthy, as many African countries have gained more flexible finance, training opportunities and so on.

In the interview, Sime specifically mentioned the "transportation lifeline" connecting Ethiopia and Djibouti—Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway. Spanning 752.7 kilometers with a designed speed of 120 kilometers per hour, the railway began commercial operation on January 1, 2018. It is the first cross-border electrified railway and the longest of its kind on the African continent.

The Railway is a flagship project of China-Ethiopia cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), contracted by China Rail Engineering Corporation (CREC) and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC). It reduces the freight time between Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, and Djibouti from the original seven days by road to just over 10 hours.

Simesaid that Ethiopia is a land-linked country, but it can fully utilize ports in neighboring countries and conduct most cross-border business with agreed tariffs. The Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway unlocks immense potential for Ethiopia's trade and will significantly boost its economic development.

In addition to economic and trade cooperation, Sime also underlined the importance of Africa-China cultural exchanges and educational collaboration. He noted that when designing and implementing Africa-China cooperation projects, it’s crucial to focus on delivering contextualized informed experiences rather than merely offering research information on cultural and educational exchanges.

Sime recalled his study experience at the Institute of South-South Cooperation and Development of Peking University. On this platform of exchange of knowledge and experience between China and Africa, he gained valuable insights from both Chinese professors and African peers. He hopes to apply what he has learned to future efforts in developing Africa.