FOCAC Summit Unveils Ambitious Plan for Shared Modernization
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Amid growing protectionism, geopolitical conflicts, trade tensions, and hampered global collaboration, China and Africa have seen deeper trade integration and international cooperation through multilateral mechanisms like the FOCAC.
China’s capital city hosted the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) from Sept. 4-6, the first such gathering in Beijing since 2018. The summit, the largest diplomatic event China has held in recent years, brought together more than 50 African leaders. Attendees included the chairperson of the African Union Commission and the United Nations secretary-general, along with representatives from various other international organizations.
Themed “Joining Hands to Advance Modernization and Build a High-Level China-Africa Community with a Shared Future,” the summit reaffirmed FOCAC’s unique role in promoting China-Africa cooperation.
During the three-day event, Chinese and African leaders reviewed the forum’s contributions to China-Africa cooperation since 2021. They praised the outcomes of four key programs: the nine initiatives proposed at the 8th FOCAC Ministerial Conference, the China-Africa Cooperation Vision 2035, the Dakar Action Plan (2022-2024), and the Declaration on China-Africa Cooperation on Combating Climate Change. These programs have driven high-quality development in both China and Africa over the past three years.
In a joint effort to further strengthen China-Africa ties, the two sides have drawn a new roadmap for modernization. During the FOCAC summit, they adopted the FOCAC Beijing Action Plan (2025-2027). Moreover, the overall characterization of China-Africa relations was elevated to an “all-weather community with a shared future for the new era.” The upgrade in relations, along with the new plan for deepening cooperation over the next three years, marks another significant turning point in China-Africa cooperation.
Since the inception of FOCAC in 2000, the forum has become increasingly indispensable in advancing practical cooperation between China and Africa. Thanks to the forum, the two sides have built a close relationship guided by collective consultation, dialogue, concrete results, mutual respect and cooperation.
In a keynote speech delivered by President Xi Jinping at the opening ceremony of the 2024 summit, he pledged China would embark on 10 partnership actions with Africa to advance modernization. These actions cover agriculture, trade, green development, health, industrial cooperation, connectivity, cultural exchange, development, security and mutual learning.
To implement these actions, the Chinese government pledged 360 billion yuan ($51 billion) in financial support over the next three years. If successful, this effort will effectively strengthen China-Africa cooperation and spearhead modernization efforts in developing nations. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said this joint China-Africa effort, based on the U.N. Charter, has the potential to create new momentum for development in Africa. “China’s partnership with the African continent is the main pillar of South-South cooperation,” Guterres said.
Amid growing protectionism, geopolitical conflicts, trade tensions, and hampered global collaboration, China and Africa have seen deeper trade integration and international cooperation through multilateral mechanisms like the FOCAC. Data from China Customs show China has been Africa’s largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years, surpassing the U.S. in 2009. Over the past two decades, the volume of China-Africa trade expanded from less than 100 billion yuan in 2000 to 1.98 trillion yuan in 2023, an annual growth rate of 17.2%.
The data reveals both record-breaking volume and an improving structure in China-Africa trade. At the 8th FOCAC Ministerial Conference in 2021, China announced a “green channel” for African agricultural products entering its market. Designed to support Africa’s economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic, the initiative has expedited quarantine and inspection processes and expanded tariff exemptions. The program has contributed to improving the volume and structure of China-Africa trade. Benefiting from initiatives like the “green channel,” African agricultural exports to China have grown at an average rate of 11.4% in recent years. As of June 2023, 16 agricultural products from 11 African countries had accessed the Chinese market through this program, helping improve food security, create jobs, raise living standards and increase farmers’ income in Africa and China.
Over the next three years, as China and Africa implement the Partnership Action for Trade Prosperity, trade between the two sides is expected to expand in volume and improve in structure, creating new opportunities for industrial growth, especially for African countries. Through this program, 33 African countries are expected to benefit from China’s zero-tariff treatment. This arrangement, along with China’s plans to expand market access for African agricultural products and deepen e-commerce cooperation, is poised to trigger growth across various industries, especially in Africa.
In the short and medium term, China’s push to build a modern socialist country and Africa’s aim to realize goals set forth in the AU’s Agenda 2063 will benefit from the joint implementation of the 10 partnership actions. These actions seek to advance modernization characterized by six key principles: justice and equity, openness and mutual benefit, people-centered development, diversity and inclusiveness, environmental sustainability, and a foundation of peace and security.
Home to more than 2.8 billion people, China and Africa together account for more than one-third of the global population. If they realize the goals set by the 10 partnership actions within the scheduled time frame, it will definitely have a major impact on China, Africa and the world at large. The outcomes will significantly boost modernization, particularly in developing nations, and could usher in a new phase in building a global community of shared future.
Alexander Ayertey Odonkor is a global economist with a keen interest in the social, environmental and economic landscape of developed countries, emerging markets and developing economies, particularly in the Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe and North America.
