Africa committed to building multilateral world: AUC chairman

China and Africa share a common political will to strengthen their strategic partnership and are committed to jointly building multilateralism, the chairman of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat said in Beijing on Thursday.

In a speech at the opening ceremony of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Faki said that China and Africa have faced the same challenges and share similar historical experiences, all of which has strengthened their resolve to work together.

"Such historical experiences have determined that we share a common destiny and have become the cornerstone for China and Africa to work together to firmly safeguard the freedom and independence of all countries and achieve common development and prosperity," he said.

Faki also hailed China for its commitment to strengthening solidarity with the people of all countries in the world. He also paid tribute to the three global initiatives proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping -- namely the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative -- which he said will help advance the African Union's own Agenda 2063 development blueprint for the African continent in the coming decades.

"These three initiatives are all aimed at realizing the dream of peace, unity and prosperity for all mankind, and are highly consistent with the African Union's Agenda 2063," Faki said.

Since its establishment in Beijing in 2000, the FOCAC has achieved tangible results in African countries, especially in infrastructure, agriculture, energy and many other fields, said Faki.

"China and Africa uphold the same fundamental values and are committed to maintaining peace, security and poverty reduction, promoting the food sovereignty and health sovereignty of all countries, and protecting the environment. China and Africa are also jointly committed to promoting a fair global political, diplomatic, financial and monetary system reform," he said, adding that Africa also has a broad and profound consensus with China in many of these areas.

During his keynote address at Thursday's opening ceremony, President Xi announced that bilateral relations between all African countries who have diplomatic ties with China be elevated to the level of strategic relations.

Faki said that there is a common political will to strengthen the China-Africa strategic partnership, and to build a built a multilateral world built on mutual respect and common prosperity.

"We are committed to building a multilateralism of peace, freedom, mutual respect and solidarity. A multilateralism that opposes hegemony, resorting to force and is against interference in the internal affairs of other countries. We sincerely hope that such multilateralism can play a role in realizing the dream of all mankind, that is, to build a common civilization of mankind that promotes peace and common prosperity," said Faki.

The three-day FOCAC summit, which opened on Wednesday, is the largest diplomatic event hosted by China in recent years, with the highest attendance of foreign leaders.

Themed "Joining Hands to Advance Modernization and Build a High-Level China-Africa Community with a Shared Future," the event aims to strengthen friendship and outline future cooperation between the two sides.

Africa committed to building multilateral world: AUC chairman

Authorities in east China's coastal provinces Zhejiang and Jiangsu have launched emergency evacuation of residents to help mitigate the impact of Typhoon Bebinca -- the 13th typhoon of the year.

In Zhejiang's Pinghu City, communities have started the relocation work. The old town area of Xindai, home to about 1,400 permanent residents, including some 30 percent elderly, has been a focus of evacuation efforts.

Over 50 elderly residents have been evacuated to a temporary courtyard shelter, where they have plenty of space for meals and walking around. The shelter is equipped with folding beds, food, drinking water and medical staff standing by to address any health concerns.

The province also raised its emergency response for typhoon prevention to level II.

In Jiangsu Province, Nantong City has conducted comprehensive safety inspections and organized evacuations in key areas.

Nantong's Rugao Port on the Yangtze River was shutdown on Sunday afternoon.

All workers at the Zhangjiagang-Jingjiang-Rugao Bridge construction site -- located at a river shoal -- are evacuated ahead of the storm attack.

"From the temporary ferry to the Rugao-Zhangjiagang ferry, we have evacuated a total of 428 people. So far, all construction personnel of the Zhangjinggao Bridge within the scope of this construction site have been evacuated to our shelter," said Ding Xiaoxing, chief engineer of Rugao Water Affairs Department.

Authorities in Nantong has evacuated more than 1,400 people and over 200 vessels along the coastal area under its jurisdiction.

Making landfall in Shanghai on Monday morning, Typhoon Bebinca is the most powerful tropical cyclone directly hitting the Chinese financial hub in more than seven decades.

Zhejiang, Jiangsu evacuate residents as Typhoon Bebinca lands in east China