中华人民共和国驻非盟使团合作交流处
Cooperation and Exchange Office
Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the African Union
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October 26th, 2017
AU Headquarters

Remarks by Mr. CHEN Ning,
Counselor, Cooperation and Exchange Office, Mission of the People’s Republic of China to the African Union,
at the Inauguration Ceremony of
the African Union Smart Health Center

Your Excellency Amb. Albert Muchanga, Commissioner for Trade and Industry of the African Union Commission,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends,

Good morning!
Today, I am very pleased to attend the inauguration ceremony of AU Smart Health Center, which is donated by the ZTE, one of the Chinese global leader in ICT sector.
Two years ago, I was appointed as the first Counselor of the Mission of China to the African Union(AU) by my Ministry of Commerce of China, to take care of the economic and development cooperation with AU.
Now the place where we stand, the African Union Conference Center and Office Complex (AUCC), as you know, was granted by the Government of China, a good example of our good relations and friendship. China is preparing some other gifts to AU, to optimize the function of AUCC, such as the Integrated Service Center under construction, in which restaurants,cafes and other logistical facilities will be located. With the purpose of offering a nice place for relaxation, China is going to build a China-Africa Friendship Garden, just between the office building and the Integrated Service Center. China is also upgrading the Radio and TV Studio, a top cover for the Amphitheater, and the modern equipment of the Printing Center for AU.
Apart from all the projects I just mentioned, ZTE’s support to AU today in the field of medical and health services could also regarded as one of the small projects linking with for the establishment of the Africa Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). China will strongly support the Africa CDC and to improve the well-being of the African people.
It’s much better to teach a man how to fish than only give him a fish. So in the past two years, we support AU in capacity building. We organized ten training programs for AU, covering the areas such as public health, agriculture, infrastructure, industrial development, female capacity building, and social development. China also provided dozens of scholarships of bachelor’s, master’s and PhD degrees to AU in different fields. We will continue to enlarge our program on capacity building for AU in coming years.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Under the framework of “Ten Major Cooperation Plans” between China and Africa, announced by my president Xi Jinping, on December 4, 2015 in Johannesburg. China’s cooperation with AU is an important part of China’s cooperation with the African continent. For the implementation of “Ten Major Cooperation Plans”, China pledged 60 billion US dollars. It includes 5 billion of grant and non-interest loans; 35 billion of concessional loans for infrastructure; another 20 billion to the China-Africa Development Fund, the Development of African SMEs, and the China-Africa Fund for Production Capacity Cooperation.
Next week, a technical team from MOFCOM will have the working meeting with AU in order to promote the Regional Infrastructure Construction Cooperation in Africa.
The Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China is famous and popular now. It is moving forward at full sail, with the support and cooperation from countries and organizations all over the world, including AU and African countries. Looking ahead, China will work closely with AU and African countries, strengthening the coordination between the Belt and Road Initiative and Agenda 2063, linking the Africa dream and the China’s dream together.
Lastly, I would repeat here, China will always be Africa’s trustworthy friend and sincere partner; China will continue the win-win cooperation with African countries.
Thank you!