High optimism as China, Tanzania move to implement FOCAC’s ‘Nine Programs’

On August 18, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi chaired the coordinators’ meeting on the implementation of the outcomes of the 8th ministerial conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) held in virtual format.

The meeting was attended by foreign minister of Senegal, the African co-chair country of the FOCAC, representatives of African subregions and the AU Commission, and diplomatic envoys of African countries in China.

The meeting comprehensively assessed the progress achieved in implementing the outcomes of the 8th ministerial conference, and reached important consensus in follow-up actions as well as further promotion of China-Africa friendship and cooperation. The meeting unanimously adopted the Joint Statement of the Coordinators’ Meeting on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the FOCAC, thereby resending the signals of enhancing solidarity and cooperation, focusing on development and win-win results, and upholding fairness and justice.

Last November, the 8th ministerial conference of the FOCAC was successfully held in Dakar. Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the “nine programs” of China-Africa cooperation. Currently, the Covid-19 is still spreading around the world, and the Ukraine crisis has brought new challenges to world peace and development.

Against this backdrop, both China and Africa as well as the international community are concerned whether the outcomes of FOCAC’s 8th ministerial conference can be implemented on schedule, and whether the good momentum of China-Africa cooperation can be maintained.

In the coordinators’ meeting, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, on behalf of China, briefed the participants on the latest progress in the implementation of the outcomes of FOCAC’s 8th ministerial conference, in particular the “nine programs”, submitting a “school report” with excellent grades to the Chinese and African peoples.

With joint efforts of China and Africa, the implementation of the outcomes of the 8th ministerial conference has a good start. China-Africa cooperation has withstood the pressure of sluggish world economic recovery, and maintained a positive and improving state. In the first half of this year, the total volume of trade between China and Africa reached $137.38 billion, registering an year-on-year growth of 16.6 per cent. China’s imports from Africa during the same period increased 19.1 per cent year on year.

Within the seven months following the 8th ministerial conference, Chinese companies invested $2.17 billion in Africa, and over two billion of the $10 billion of trade finance was allocated. More African agricultural produce has reached the Chinese market through the “green lanes”, and over three billion has been delivered out of the $10 billion of credit facilities pledged to African financial institutions.

Nearly $2.5 billion of loans were channeled to Africa’s priority programs. Moreover, China has been actively fulfilling its promises on supporting Africa’s anti-pandemic efforts.

Within the seven months following the 8th ministerial conference, China provided 189 million doses of vaccines to 27 African countries. At present, the joint production of vaccines in Africa has an annual capacity of about 400 million doses. China has once again proved with real actions and results that China-Africa cooperation is action-oriented, not a “talk shop”, that China always keeps its words in front of African brothers, and that China’s support to Africa’s development is ever-lasting.

China-Tanzania cooperation is always at the forefront of China-Africa cooperation.

Both China and Tanzania attach great importance to the implementation of the “nine programs”. Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Tanzanian Foreign Minister Liberata Mulamula have met each other twice: one physical, the other via video link. On August 19, 2022, the 6th meeting of China-Tanzania Joint Economic, Technical and Trade Committee was held, during which the two sides had an in-depth discussion on the implementation of the “nine programs” and expansion of cooperation areas. Broad consensus was reached in the meeting, and important early harvest has been expected by both sides in the implementation of the 8th ministerial conference’s outcomes.

From January to June this year, China-Tanzania bilateral trade volume reached 3.558 billion US dollars, registering a year-on-year increase of 31.5 per cent. Tanzania has signed the document on zero tariff for 98 per cent of its export items to China, and China will waive one interest-free loan for Tanzania that had matured by the end of 2021. The Mwalimu Julius Nyerere Leadership School, which was built with Chinese funds, has been inaugurated.

The China-aided Kagera Regional Vocational Training and Service Centre, the construction of which has completed, will be handed over soon. Currently, China and Tanzania are conducting close communication on Juncao technology cooperation as well as other small-scale projects which will improve Tanzanian people’s livelihood. In addition, the construction of Huaxin Maweni 4,000T/D clinker production line phase II in Tanga Region, which is part of China’s largest single investment in Tanzania, has already started.

The Phase 5 of the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), the Julius Nyerere Hydropower Station and other major infrastructural projects undertaken by Chinese enterprises are making steady progress. China has been firmly supporting the Tanzanian Government in combating the Covid-19 pandemic.

With the arrival of the 3 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines in Tanzania this July, the total number of China-donated Covid-19 vaccines received by Tanzania has reached 5.61 million doses. New progress has been achieved in people-to-people exchanges between our two countries, which include i.a. the signing of the Implementation Program for the Years 2022-2025 Under the China-Tanzania Government Cultural Agreement and the resumption of direct flights between Dar es Salaam and Guangzhou operated by Air Tanzania.

These hard-won achievements are inevitable outcomes of the sincere cooperation between China and Tanzania, and they have injected strong impetus to further deepening of friendship between our two countries.

History has repeatedly proved that as long as China and Africa join hands, their cooperation will demonstrate great vitality and bring about a bright future for Chinese and African people featuring common development.

Going forward, China will continue aligning its development needs and strategies with those of Tanzania, work with the Tanzanian side to push forward steadily the implementation of the outcomes of FOCAC’s 8th ministerial conference, promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and continuously enhance cooperation in such fields as agriculture, manufacturing and infrastructure construction.

China will also expand cooperation with Tanzania in emerging industries, such like digital economy and green economy.

These efforts aim to support Tanzania’s endeavor to accelerate its independent and sustainable development and contribute to the building of a China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era.