The Launching Ceremony of the China-Africa Think Tanks 10+10 Partnership Plan was held in Beijing on October 21, 2013 (LIU JIAN)

The Third Meeting of the China-Africa Think Tank Forum (CATTF) and the Launching Ceremony of the China-Africa Think Tanks 10+10 Partnership Plan was held in Beijing from October 21 to 22.  The forum was co-hosted by Zhejiang Normal University (ZNU) and  the Institute of West Asian and African Studies ((IWAAS) of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. China Development Bank supported the event, which was themed Upgrading Sino-African Relations and Constructing Chinese and African Soft Power.

At the forum, representatives from renowned Chinese and African think tanks and research institutions, as well as politicians, businesspeople and non-governmental organizations, gathered to present Sino-African research achievements, discuss common interests, and launch the Think Tanks 10+10 Partnership Plan, which when fully-implemented will include10 Chinese think tanks and 10 African think tanks for long-term paired cooperation and exchanges.

"Neither China, nor Africa can continue to grow without the other," said Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi during a speech at the forum. "Through this forum, we will strengthen our partnership, and strengthen the bonds of a shared destiny...We will make the international order more balanced, and inclusive."

Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi made a speech at the forum (LIU JIAN)

The 10+10 Partnership Plan came to fruition under the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation Beijing Action Plan (2013-2015), which proposed to sponsor 100 academic research, exchange and cooperation programs by Chinese and African institutions and scholars over the next three years. This includes the 10+10 Partnership Plan, which currently has selected eight institutions from both sides to participate.

Elizabeth Sidiropoulos, Chief Executive of the South African Institute of International Affairs, acknowledged that with globalization has come a wave of opportunities, but also a new mandate to cooperate.

"I would characterize this 10-plus-10 initiative as an important instrument for facilitating cooperation, deepening mutual understanding, and charting routes to a sustainable future for the generations that come after us," Sidiropoulos said in an address to the forum.

"After all, the 10-plus-10 seeks to ground the China-Africa relationship in scholarly research and exchanges that create informed opinions and propose viable alternatives."

This year's forum followed gains made at the first meeting, held in 2011 in Zhejiang Province, and the second, held in 2012 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Representatives from renowned Chinese and African think tanks and research institutions, as well as politicians, businesspeople and non-governmental organizations attended the forum (LIU JIAN)

Representatives from renowned Chinese and African think tanks and research institutions, as well as politicians, businesspeople and non-governmental organizations attended the forum (LIU JIAN)