The eighth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs is held in Beijing on 6 September (XINHUA) 

China-Africa economic and trade cooperation serves as a cornerstone of bilateral collaboration and provides strong support for jointly advancing modernisation, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said in a speech at the opening ceremony of the eighth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs held in Beijing on 6 September. 

He said that the two sides should further strengthen market alignment. China, he said, will expand unilateral market access to the least developed countries and widen the green channel for African agricultural exports to China. 

Li called for further promotion of industrial integration, expressing China’s willingness to deepen cooperation with Africa in industrial chains to jointly safeguard the stability and smooth functioning of global industrial and supply chains. 

He also stressed the need to further enhance the innovation-driven momentum, noting that China is ready to strengthen cooperation with Africa in areas such as the digital economy, artificial intelligence and new energy, thereby fostering new drivers of development and exploring more new growth points. 

About 1,000 attendees including African leaders, Chinese and African entrepreneurs, and representatives of international organisations and institutions exchanged ideas at the conference held in Beijing and co-hosted by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade and China’s Ministry of Commerce.  

The attending companies, including famous brands from China and Africa, cover a wide range of traditional and emerging industries, including energy, mining, infrastructure, electronic technology, communication satellites, and biomedicine. A considerable number of small and medium-sized enterprises also participated in the event. 

Besides opening and closing ceremonies, the conference featured a session of special speeches organised around two major themes: the integration of industrial chain and supply chain, and the development of emerging industries. During the session, 12 entrepreneurs from China and Africa delivered speeches on the significance of China-Africa cooperation for their respective industries. They believe that China’s push for the development of new quality productive forces and Africa’s endeavour to achieve modernisation and independent development present great potential for cooperation in emerging fields such as digital economy, green development, and artificial intelligence. The two sides need to work closely to improve the level of integration of industrial chain and supply chain, strengthen the training of scientific and technological talents, promote the development of emerging industries, and oppose protectionism. 

In recent years, China-Africa economic and trade relations have achieved fruitful results. China has been Africa's largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years. China-Africa trade reached a record high of $282.1 billion last year, up 1.5 percent year on year, according to statistics released by China's Ministry of Commerce. During the January-July period, bilateral trade totalled 1.19 trillion yuan (about $166.48 billion), a record high for that period, customs data showed.  

Since its establishment in 2003, the Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs has been held eight times. It is the highest-level economic and trade event for the China-Africa business community under the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. It is also an important institutional platform for China and Africa to further expand cooperation in the economic and trade fields and promote the comprehensive development of China-Africa economic and trade relations.