Representatives from renowned Chinese and African think tanks and research institutions, as well as government officials, businesspeople and NGOs, recently gathered in Beijing to present Sino-African research achievements and launch the China-Africa Think Tanks 10+10 Partnership Plan. Currently, this partnership plan has selected eight institutions from both sides to participate. When fullyimplemented the plan will include 10 Chinese think tanks and 10 African think tanks for long-term paired cooperation and exchanges.

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 took place from October 21 to 22. The event 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 (CASS). China Development Bank supported the event, which was themed Upgrading Sino-African Relations and Constructing Chinese and African Soft Power.

"Neither China nor Africa can continue to grow without the other," said China 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."

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.

Chinese and African scholars shared their views with ChinAfrica on think tank exchanges and the future prospects of China-Africa think-tank cooperation. Excerpts follow:

ChinAfrica: What role do you think this think tank forum and the partnership play in enhancing Sino-African relations?

The forum is especially important for developing key themes of research development, and upgrading relations between China and Africa. It's an important platform for all involved parties to get together and discuss the issues that we face together.

The forum provides a good opportunity for people to meet and see how we can work together. That's the best way of facing up to whatever stereotypes that are coming up in the media. China should pay more attention to cultural relations with Africa, as cultural exchanges will build the basis of understanding.

Think tanks are providing the intellectual framework to drive the policy of further cooperation between China and Africa. I think the forum is very timely, as it's going to add a lot of clarification on issues concerning our cooperation. Think tank exchanges not only provide intellectual support, but they drive it.

I see this partnership as much more - beyond academic research. If we want to have a more hospitable society, we need to encourage one another to have sustainable economic development, to make societies more stable. To do this, we need to establish a bigger focus on infrastructure development of education in Africa.

The forum promotes Sino-African people-to-people exchanges, which makes our cooperation in other areas more sustainable. It also provides a good opportunity for scholars to discuss problems in Sino-African cooperation and work together to find possible solutions. African scholars can also better understand China's Africa policy during the exchanges.

Participants at this forum include scholars and researchers from academic institutions, as well as Chinese government officials. The forum works as an innovative mechanism to bring all parties in China related to African affairs together to discuss [relevant issues].

What improvements need to be made to the think tank exchanges, so that it can better play its role?

Through the exchanges on governance and development experiences, we can explore our own "Chinese way" and "African way" based on our independent development experiences and needs. We will discuss how we can innovate on our cooperative mechanisms to promote industrialization and increase employment opportunities and people's income in Africa.

Compared with think tank dialogues between China and the United States, the European Union, Japan and Russia, China-Africa think tank exchanges are lagging behind the reality of their bilateral ties. I hope the numbers of those [China-Africa] research institutions will increase and exchanges between those think tanks will also increase and deepen in the future.

Zhang Zhongxiang: I hope the China-Africa Think Tanks 10+10 Partnership Plan can complement and integrate with current joint research mechanisms. I also hope the Partnership Plan can be expanded to include more research institutes in the near future, as the saying goes, "when everybody adds fuel the flames rise high."

Fatima Harrak: It will be very nice if the Chinese Government can help us set up an institute of Chinese studies, which will help our students learn more about Chinese culture, language and history. If we can integrate some Chinese studies within the university program, it will probably speed up the process.

Joseph Onjala: Many of the African countries that are signed up to this framework maybe aren't enjoying equal benefits. This is especially true in trade. Most African countries import [a lot] from China, but export only natural resources. We need to research opportunities available to them, and understand how they can also benefit from this partnership.

In what areas do you see potential for the think tanks to further improve cooperation, so as to better provide intellectual support for the development of China-Africa relations?

The research of the think tanks can focus more attention on the future development trend of China-Africa cooperation, while scholars involved in research projects related to Africa should have the chance to visit Africa for themselves. In addition, I suggest topics discussed at the forum can be more focused.

Liu Hongwu: ZNU's Institute of African Studies is partnered with the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs under the China-Africa Think Tanks 10+10 Partnership Plan. We plan to carry out joint research in a wide range of areas including peace and security, infrastructure construction and agricultural technology transfer. We are also considering working with Nigerian universities to establish institutes of Chinese studies.

Sun Xiaomeng: I hope our cooperation can be expanded in basic disciplines in African studies such as anthropology, history, society, religion, language and literature. If the Chinese Government can set up special funds to build institutes of Chinese studies in Africa, they will help Africans better understand China.

I believe communication is what makes a relationship easier, and helps our people better understand each other. The Confucius Institutes are only one channel. We should also send teachers to China to teach Swahili, a popular language in Africa. Exchanges of teaching staff and students are also important.

The criticism from the Western media that China is colonizing Africa is not true. There should be more African scholars coming up to challenge that. I hope the Chinese Government can provide more scholarships for young African researchers to study in China to understand what these issues are.

Education will be the driver of change and cooperation between China and Africa. We need proper investment in research and innovation, and a focus on quality education. The quantity of education alone will not help places like Kenya, but we also need an infusion of ideas such as quality, equity and efficiency.