The Fourth China-Africa Think Tank Forum in Pretoria,South Africa

Preparations are underway for the Second Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), to be held in Johannesburg in December, with a think tank bringing together over 100 leaders and scholars to discuss Africa's development and China-Africa cooperation.

The Fourth China-Africa Think Tank Forum (CATTF), an initiative launched by China's Zhejiang Normal University in 2011 to create a platform for dialogue and exchanges between Chinese and African thinkers, was held in Pretoria, South Africa, on September 9-10.

A FOCAC sub-forum, this year's CATTF was themed "New Development Trends Under African Vision 2063." It pooled the wisdom of the participants and their pragmatic suggestions on improving China-Africa relations and cooperation as well as the FOCAC Summit.

On September 4, Chinese Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi and his South African counterpart Maite Nkoana-Mashabane made a joint announcement during South African President Jacob Zuma's visit to China. Announcing the dates for the FOCAC meeting - December 4 and 5 - they said it will be upgraded to a summit.

It's an appropriate upgrade as this year marks the 15th anniversary of the FOCAC. It's also the Year of China in South Africa.

Unprecedented opportunity

The Second FOCAC Summit, the first to be held in Africa, will be preceded by a senior officials' meeting on December 2 and the Sixth Ministerial Conference of the FOCAC on December 3.

Chinese President Xi Jinping will co-chair the FOCAC Summit with President Zuma.

"This important summit will present an unprecedented opportunity for leaders of China and Africa to together map out the grand blueprint for our cooperation in the new era," said Li Song, Charge d'Affaires ad Interim of the Chinese Embassy in South Africa, at the CATTF opening session. "It will surely mark a new milestone in the history of China-Africa relations."

Li said China will take the summit as an important opportunity to promote such major initiatives as networks of railways, highways and regional aviation in Africa. It will also focus on industrial cooperation, financial cooperation, poverty alleviation and ecological and environmental protection. Cultural and people-to-people exchanges as well as peace and security are the other major cooperation areas. This wide range of cooperation, Li added, will contribute to lasting peace and sustainable development in Africa.

Ambassador Nozipho Mxakato-Diseko, Deputy Director General of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation in South Africa, said the CATTF had the "bigger role of changing the narrative about the continent, changing the narrative about China, changing the narrative about [Sino-African] relationship." She urged the forum to come up with strategies and solutions that would empower China and Africa to overcome their challenges.

Dai Bing, Deputy Director General at the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Department of African Affairs, pointed out that China and Africa were the most qualified parties to have a say on the subject of development in China and Africa and the achievements of China-Africa cooperation.

Flourishing ties

China-Africa cooperation is blooming. Last year, trade between the two exceeded $220 billion while China's total investment in Africa approached $30 billion, according to figures presented at the CATTF. More than 3,000 Chinese companies are present in Africa and have created over 100,000 jobs.

The railways built by Chinese companies and those under construction exceed 5,000 km. They have also built roads exceeding 4,000 km. Chinese firms have also built or are building a lot of infrastructure facilities, including airports, ports, bridges and power plants. China-Africa cooperation contributes to more than 20 percent of Africa's economic growth.

There has been an increase in high-level visits. President Xi, Premier Li Keqiang, State Councilor Yang Jiechi, and other Chinese leaders visited Africa in the past three years. Last year, 15 African leaders visited China or took part in important events in China, hitting a historic high. This year, 15 African leaders had visited China by September 9.

In terms of people-to-people exchanges, about 1.9 million Chinese visited Africa in 2013, and about 550,000 Africans visited or came to study in China. In 2014, the number of Africans coming to study in China reached 40,000.

China has sent 18,000 medical personnel and 10,000 agricultural technology experts to Africa and trained more than 70,000 people. The China-Africa joint research and exchange plan has seen 179 projects being launched.

Li Song said the Chinese Government and people are striving to realize the "Chinese Dream of the great renewal of the Chinese nation" by attaining two centenary goals. These are doubling the 2010 GDP and per-capita urban and rural income and building a moderately prosperous society in all aspects by 2020; and turning China into an all-around modern and socially advanced country by 2049 when the People's Republic of China marks its centenary.

Africans too, the envoy pointed out, are working to realize the "African Dream" by implementing Agenda 2063, the African Union's action plan to build a prosperous and united Africa based on shared values and a common destiny.

As Li summed it up, with common development goals, China and Africa enjoy stronger aspirations and a more solid foundation for further cooperation.

(Reporting from Johannesburg, South Africa)