Sharing experience

China's then Vice President Hu Jintao meets with Abder Rahim Zouari, General Secretary of the Rassemblement Constitutionnel Democratique of Tunisia on June 21st, 2000. [File Photo]

High-ranking CPC leaders, including those from the 16th and the 17th Central Politburo Standing Committees, have led delegations on frequent visits to African countries. Standing Committee member Li Changchun made three visits to Africa in 2005, 2008 and 2011, and the 10 countries he visited included Sudan, Namibia, Tanzania, South Africa, Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia, Mozambique and Kenya.

Moreover, many members of the Politburo, secretaries of the Secretariat of the 16th and 17th CPC Central Committee have led delegations to visit Africa. Each year the CPC sends 10 delegations to visit Africa, led by provincial/ministerial leaders. The CPC also invites around 20 senior delegations from African political parties to visit China every year. President Zuma of South Africa, President Pohamba of Namibia and President Guebuza of Mozambique all led such delegations before they assumed the presidency.

In June 2008 when President Zuma, leader of the ANC, visited China, he proposed to Chinese president Hu Jintao that the CPC organize training workshops for the senior members of the ANC. President Hu actively responded to the request and soon a plan was hammered out. Since then 56 senior ANC leaders in four batches have participated in workshops on the theories and experience of the ruling parties of China and South Africa.

In October 2011, Gwede Mantashe, General Secretary of the ANC, led the fourth delegation of ANC members to China. While meeting with Xi Jinping, China's vice president and member of the CPC Politburo Standing Committee, Mantashe said that all the delegation members are happy to visit and study in China and that they admire the achievements made by the CPC in leading its people in the country's construction. The experience and theories of the CPC, he added, are worth learning.

Other than the ANC, parties such as the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front and the Zimbabwe African National Union — Patriotic Front also send their senior members to visit and study in China. The CPC and African political parties share the same wish to understand and learn from each other. African political parties, especially those ruling parties, hope to learn the experience of the CPC in party building and country construction. Many parties explicitly say that they want the CPC to train their senior leaders. The CPC has also carried out research into the experiences African ruling parties that have a long history in order to improve its own party building in the new era. In recent years, the number of African party members that come to China to visit or study has increased and it is expected to welcome 7.5 million arrivals by 2012. They take part in workshops of different types and topics, including party building, economic development, poverty reduction, young people and women. The CPC also sends experts to some African countries on their request to brief them about China and the experience of the CPC.

Promoting traditional Sino-African friendship

With the older generation of leaders leaving political arena, it has become a common task for young politicians of both sides to continue the Sino-African friendship. Sam Nujoma, the first president of Namibia, went to China to receive political and military training while fighting for national independence. He has visited China for 17 times and has a deep affection for China. In his latest visit to China, he said to Chinese leaders that the Namibian people even forget the names of the Chinese teachers who trained Namibian freedom fighters. He deemed that it is necessary to write down the history and pass it down to the younger generation. According to the proposal of Namibia's South West Africa People's Organization (SWAPO), the CPC and the SWAPO co-organized the first Africa-China Young Leaders Forum in Windhoek in May 2011.

The forum brought together 180 young leaders from China and 18 African countries. On the theme of "Friendship, Cooperation and Development," the participants had thoroughly deliberated on issues related to Sino-African relations, such as its history, current situation and the opportunities and challenges under the new situation. Wu Bangguo, chairman of the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, said at the opening ceremony that it is the common aspiration for 2.3 billion Chinese and African people to consolidate their friendship, promote practical cooperation and boost common development. He believes that through unremitting efforts of generations of young African and Chinese people, the Sino-African friendship will grow stronger. Namibian leaders such as President Pohamba reviewed the history of Sino-African friendship from their personal experiences and called on young leaders to carry forward the cause of Sino-African unity and cooperation. President Pohamba said it was a long journey full of challenges from 1955 in Bandung, to 2000 in Beijing and 2011 in Windhoek. China overcame difficulties and insisted on cooperation with Africa. China built up its prestige in Africa and made many friends.

In June 2012, the second China-Africa Young Leaders' Forum was held in Beijing. Nearly 200 young leaders from China and 38 African countries attended the forum. Chairman Jia Qinglin of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and Namibia's founding president Sam Nujoma were present on the forum. The participants had a spirited discussion themed on "China-Africa Cooperation and Youth Development" and reached extensive consensus. The forum concluded with the Beijing Declaration.

The forum is not only a venue for both sides to review traditional friendship, but also a platform to discuss new cooperation. Both sides agree that the forum should be held regularly. The forum would be held for every three years in China and Africa by turns.