"My goal in coming here today is to draw inspiration from Chinese achievements in promoting and protecting cultural diversity, in order to launch relevant and effective projects in this area back in Morocco," Fatimah Ait Mhand, Head of the International Cooperation at Ministry of Culture of Morocco, told ChinAfrica.

Mhand is among the 27 African delegates taking part in the Ministerial Seminar on Cultural Diversity for French-Speaking African Countries held on May 9-14 by the Central Academy of Cultural Administration (CACA) in China. Delegates come from 11 African countries including Morocco, Senegal, Benin, Comoros, Mali, Equatorial Guinea and Niger, among others.

Morocco has ratified the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in 2013, six years after China. Mhand believes China's experience in this field can offer examples of best practice for her country. "Morocco is a country with rich cultural diversity, including Arab, Amazigh and Hassani cultures, and these would benefit from being better protected," she said.

Sponsored by China's Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Culture, the seminar aims at building bridges between African and Chinese partners in the area of cultural protection and promotion, according to Zhou Qingfu, President of CACA. "We hope that this seminar will help the participants to have a better understanding of China's efforts in protecting and disseminating its cultural diversity," said Zhou in his opening speech.

CACA is an education and training institute under the Ministry of Culture of China. Throughout the years, CACA has provided training to more than 1,093 foreign delegates and experts from 103 countries around the world.