China counts down to forum

The Chinese government has spoken about the upcoming China-Africa summit. It will be the highest-level and largest such meeting since the founding of the People's Republic of China.

China's six ministries held a joint press conference Wednesday afternoon. According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, the forum, to be held from Nov. 3rd to 5th, will be beneficial to the fundamental interests of China and Africa and their relations.

Xu Jinghu, director for Asia of Chinese Foreign Ministry said, "The theme of the upcoming forum is Friendship, Peace, Cooperation and Development. At the summit, Chinese and African leaders will review the achievements of friendly Sino-African cooperation in the past 50 years."

Economic cooperation between China and Africa has developed rapidly, particularly over the past decade. Ministry of Commerce statistics show that two-way trade rocketed from 4 billion US dollars in 1995 to some 40 billion dollars in 2005.

Zhou Yabin, director for Asia- Africa of Chinese Ministry of Commerce said, "Annual bilateral trade volume is expected to reach 50 billion dollars by the end of 2006. We will seek more economic opportunities during the November forum."

China and African countries will also work out blueprints for future cooperation in various fields and exchange views on major international issues. Around 50 African heads of state or government will attend the China-Africa summit.

The China-Africa cooperation forum will be the third summit of its kind since 2000. Jointly established by China and African countries, the forum has become a mechanism for collective dialogue and cooperation to help cope with new challenges and to facilitate common development.