Towards a greener, more prosperous, and healthier future together: A Symposium following the 8th Ministerial Conference of FOCAC

H.E. Mr. Abdallah Abdillahi Miguil, Ambassador of the Republic of Djibouti to the People’s Republic of China, Ag. Dean of the African Ambassadors Group.

H.E. Mr. Osman Rahamtalla, African Union Ambassador at China

H.E. Mr. Teshome Toga Chanaka, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

Mr. Wu Peng, Director-General, Department of African Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, People’s Republic of China

Mr. Jiang Wei, Director-General, Department of Western Asian and African Affairs, Ministry of Commerce, People’s Republic of China

Mr. Liu Junfeng, Director-General, African Department, China International Development Cooperation Agency

Mr. Alan Beebe, President, American Chamber of Commerce in China

Mr. Steven Lynch, Managing Director, British Chamber of Commerce in China

Excellences, Friends, Ladies, and Gentlemen,

Good morning!

I would like to welcome you to attend this symposium and express my profound gratitude to H.E. Mr. Abdallah Abdillahi Miguel, H.E. Mr. Osman Rahamtalla, and H.E. Mr. Teshome Toga Chanaka, and their teams’ diligent effort to organize this critical symposium following up the achievements of the 8th Ministerial Conference of FOCAC.

Twenty years ago, China and African joined hands together to establish FOCAC with a common goal to strengthen their relations and cooperation in development. Today we can see the great benefits brought by enhanced China-Africa engagement. 

China has risen to become the second-largest economy of the world, as well as Africa’s biggest trade partner, infrastructure financier, and source of foreign direct investment. On the other hand, Africa has enjoyed sustained economic growth and is the home of the world’s most dynamic economies. Based on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and African Union’s Agenda 2063, we can see a future of Africa transforming itself to realize the Sustainable Development Goals and become the next engine for the world’s development.

As the UN Secretary-General António Guterres points out in his opening remarks at the 2018 FOCAC summit, China and Africa can unite their combined potential for peaceful, durable, equitable progress to the benefit of all humankind.

While we cherish these achievements, we could not ignore the daunting challenges ahead, especially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Africa experienced its first recession in 2020, the access to vaccines is still limited, and youth unemployment is rising. Meanwhile, the world together is faced with the imminent threat of climate change. With a combined population that comprises 35% of the world's total, China-Africa cooperation in climate is of great global importance.

This is why the 8th Ministerial Conference of FOCAC was held at such a critical moment. The nine major projects listed in the Dakar Action Plan, including providing another 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines, poverty alleviation programs and boost trade and investment could offer the much-needed resources for Africa from the pandemic. The four outcome documents achieved through this conference also indicate that both parties are devoted to uniting and delivering a peaceful and prosperous future for mankind.

All of the ideas presented at FOCAC have great potential in promoting the realization of Sustainable Development Goals in this Decade of Action. Through the consensus built upon China-Africa Cooperation Vision 2035 and the Sino-African Declaration on Climate Change, China and Africa will work as an exemplary “partnership of equals”.

Over the past 70 years, the UN system has played a crucial role in coordinating assistance of all kinds through its unique capacities as the world’s premier vehicle for international development and cooperation. The UN offers comparative advantages with regard to achieving further tangible progress toward the SDGs, drawing on its values, successful global knowledge base, best practices, and lessons learned.

For instance, the UN is actively promoting public-private partnerships (PPP) to create alliances among different stakeholders to realize Agenda 2030. I can talk from my experiences when I was the UN Resident Coordinator in Kenya.

Funded by the African Development Bank, the European Union, and the Kenyan Government, a Chinese state company constructed a spectacular highway in record time, connecting Isiolo town in Kenya to Ethiopia.

Let me raise another example. In Kenya, in 2014 we had developed a partnership between the UN, the Government of Kenya, and businesses including Huawei (China), Merck (USA), Philips (Netherlands), GlaxoSmithKlein (UK), Safaricom (Kenya) and the Kenya Health Care Federation. Together we supported the Government’s efforts in reducing maternal deaths in 6 of the highest-burden counties, with a nearly one-third reduction in maternal mortality in these areas. More recently with Huawei and Safaricom, telemedicine projects are being implemented in some countries and are being scaled up nationwide. These projects can be replicated globally.

Today, the UN in China is proposing two flagship initiatives: the China-Africa SDG Partnership Platform that brings in UN, government, private sector, and other stakeholders from China and Africa to work on rural revitalization and food systems transformation; the International Center of Excellence for Applied Sustainable Development Solutions that brings top talents from around the world that study application sustainable solutions according to the needs of African countries.

Moreover, I also see greater opportunities for the UN Country Team in China, but also the UN Country Teams in African countries to collaborate and deliver as one to further enhance China-Africa economic cooperation and unlock Africa’s real economic and social potential.

Today’s symposium will be an essential platform to facilitate more in-depth discussions about this potential. The UN is willing to work in lockstep with the Government of China and African governments with a forward-looking strategic vision to boost the implementation of the China-Africa cooperation projects. Four specific topics will be discussed in today’s panels: clean energy transition and carbon neutrality; China-Africa Cooperation in rural revitalization; Public Health System Reform and China-Africa cooperation in finance, investment, and SMEs.

The UN family will continue to work with China and Africa in these new prospects of cooperation through instruments such as FOCAC, sharing China’s development experiences with Africa for recovery and resilience under the current global environment.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are at a critical juncture of human history. The world is striving toward recovery from the pandemic, and the SDGs remain a critical blueprint towards achieving a more sustainable and just future, a future that truly leaves no one behind.

We will continue to coordinate the work between the UN agencies in China and Africa to support both the Chinese and African governments to achieve the SDGs, assisting Africa to grow economies and improve livelihoods, and jointly create exemplary development cooperation that brings a better future for the world.

I wish you a great discussion today.