China and African Nations Collaborate on Trade and Investment in Geneva

Geneva, October 30 (Daily Kiran) : During the 10th “Trade Facilitation” global review conference of the World Trade Organization, China, Zambia, and Rwanda convened in Geneva, Switzerland. The primary focus of the meeting was “Promoting Africa’s Industrialization through China-Africa Trade and Investment Integration.”

In his keynote address, Jiang Chenghua, Deputy Minister of Commerce of China, highlighted the persistent gap in global trade development. He noted that African countries still have a minimal share in international trade and manufacturing value addition. Therefore, enhancing industrialization and economic growth through trade and investment integration has become crucial.

Jiang pointed out that this year marks the 25th anniversary of China’s accession to the World Trade Organization. He expressed China’s desire to share its developmental experiences with all parties involved. Additionally, he emphasized the importance of leveraging opportunities for reform within the organization to advance its development agenda and reduce the development gap.

Following Jiang, Chen Hao, Deputy Director of the International Economic Cooperation Bureau of the Ministry of Commerce, discussed China’s efforts to promote Africa’s industrialization through trade facilitation. He explained that China has enhanced connectivity in Africa by developing infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, airports, and ports. Furthermore, China has collaborated on green transformation and expanded partnerships in emerging sectors like clean energy and communications.

To date, China has implemented 38 vocational technical school projects in 23 African countries, strengthening human resource cooperation. By constructing factories and industrial parks, improving agricultural industry chains, and promoting trade and investment integration, China has laid a solid foundation for Africa’s industrialization.

During the meeting, high-level officials from Zambia and Rwanda, along with representatives from Chinese-funded enterprises, shared their experiences. In Zambia, Chinese-funded projects have invested over $500 million to establish a urea production project with an annual capacity of 300,000 tons. This initiative converts local coal into fertilizer, helping Zambia transition from an importer to an exporter of fertilizers. Meanwhile, in Rwanda, Chinese-funded enterprises have created jobs for nearly 10,000 people by establishing factories. As a result, “Made in Rwanda” clothing is gaining popularity in Europe and America, benefiting the local population.

The “Trade Facilitation” global review conference by the World Trade Organization, which began in 2007, is held every two years. It aims to evaluate and monitor the implementation of trade facilitation initiatives. The 10th conference took place from October 29 to 30 in Geneva.