China can play a very positive role in assisting African countries, according to a senior World Bank official who has had rich work experiences in Africa.

James Adams, the bank's new vice-president for East Asia and Pacific Region, also did not see as "a big constraint" China's reluctance to impose conditions on its aid to Africa.

"What is important is the quality of the excellent investments - how they are designed and how they are implemented," he told China Daily earlier this month at the end of his week-long visit to China.

Prior to his new position, Adams was the bank's vice-president for operational policy and country services. He was put on that post, to a large extent, because of his successful operational experiences in Uganda and Tanzania.

Following talks with Chinese officials, Adams was encouraged to learn that China is willing to work with the World Bank in African countries.

"We are pretty confident that we will be able to find a broad range of activities where we can work together," he said.

Adams said the issue of conditionality, which has been a topic for debate in the international media, would not be an obstacle for China and the World Bank's co-operation in helping African countries.

He noted that Chinese firms operating assistance projects funded by the Chinese Government are subject to work within the framework of the types of policies and operations China used internally.

Most of these policies represented important, adequate standards for implementation from the Bank's perspective.

If the World Bank had a concern over projects involving China and the World Bank's cooperation, the two sides would closely consult and work out an agreement, he said.

Adams said in addition to direct government assistance, China could help African countries in two other areas.

The Chinese Government could pass on its experiences in development to African countries; and Chinese firms could participate more actively in bidding for contracts of projects financed by other donors, including projects supported by the World Bank.

He said China's advice to African countries could be better received compared to advice offered from developed countries.

China did not come to Africa as a former colonial power, or as part of the rich establishment in the world, so many African countries could better relate to its development experience, he said.

China's words of advice would have more impact and African countries would actively listen, Adams said.

"From that perspective, China is a very different participant from the United States, Japan or Europe," Adams said.

"It is not a criticism for the more traditional sources. It is just an observation about how this relationship is different."

Adams said he hoped China could use its experiences to convince African countries about the benefits of trade liberalization, which had been a very controversial issue in World Bank's dialogues with African countries.

"If you talk to people in African countries (about China's experiences), very often, they'll focus on a large government participation that still exists in economy."

But they often neglect the important change China made in utilizing private sector. They also did not pay sufficient attention to the magnitude to which China has opened up to the world.

African countries seemed to believe the World Bank and Western countries asked them to open up so Western countries can take advantage.

"If China describes its experience in (trade) liberalization, its accession to the World Trade Organization, and why the government of China feels that was an important priority, and how it benefited from that, it will be a very powerful message," Adams said.

China's message can "very much strengthen what we (the World Bank) feel are the best practices," he said.

There are many other issues where China's experiences can benefit African countries. These include strengthening university systems, agricultural reform and improving energy efficiency.

"All of these things are issues China has seen through clearly," Adams said.

"In dialogue with Africa and other developing countries, it can help those countries to think it through as well."

In term of Chinese enterprises' participation of assistance projects in Africa, Adams said Chinese firms' performance had generally been of high quality and consistent.

Adams said the World Bank would continue to seek to strengthen its relationship with China regarding the development of China itself.

He said the world needed to be reminded that despite China's enormous progress, its people still live on a per capita income of less than US$2,000 a year. There was still much to do to reduce poverty.

In addition, the country faces big challenges in making improvements in such areas as education and health care, he said.

The bank intended to learn lessons through its participation in China's further development and reform and to disseminate the lessons to other developing countries.

On the other hand, the bank is also willing to introduce to China other developing countries' good experiences and practice, he said.

For example, China may find some Latin American countries' experiences in improving health care system very useful.

East European countries' success in their governments' electronic procurement is also a good practice that China can introduce to increase government efficiency, he said.

(China Daily December 18, 2006)