China's top political advisor Wang Huning on Thursday met with Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema, who is in Beijing to attend the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
Wang, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said that the meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Hichilema was fruitful, drawing a new blueprint for the development of China-Zambia relations.
Taking the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Zambia as an opportunity, China is willing to work with Zambia to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state and the outcomes of the summit, promote the development of mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Zambia, and contribute to the building of a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future. The CPPCC is willing to make positive efforts to this end, Wang said.
Hichilema said that Zambia and China have maintained profound traditional friendship. In recent years, practical cooperation in various fields has achieved remarkable results. The African side is greatly cheered by President Xi's proposal of 10 partnership action plans for China and Africa to work together to promote modernization, as China decided to expand market opening to African countries. Zambia will continue to promote the development of Zambia-China and Africa-China relations in the spirit of the summit, he said.
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.
China's top political advisor meets Zambian president
The ongoing China International Fair for Trade in Services (CIFTIS) has attracted scores of new participants this year, with repeat participants also making their mark at the fair.
Themed "Global Services, Shared Prosperity," the trade fair, opened in China's capital city Beijing on Thursday and runs till Monday.
The CIFTIS is becoming more and more international, with a total of 36 Belt and Road partners showcasing their products.
Tharaka Dissanayake who works at the Sri Lankan Embassy in China has participated in the fair many times. He came to promote tea culture this time and believes that tea culture can better strengthen cooperation and exchanges between the two countries.
"For any commodity, it's a huge market. Obviously, this is one of the greatest platforms close to the Chinese consumer, to introduce ourselves, introduce our products, whatever the services or innovation," said Abeysekara, third secretary of the Sri Lankan Embassy in China.
An old friend of the fair was playing an African drum and the rhythmic sound attracted a large crowd.
"I'm here again. Many people took my WeChat and my contact, my number. So they called me, they ordered and they need more," said a Ghanaian exhibitor.
Dewi Avilia, Counselor for Social and Cultural Affairs at the Indonesian Embassy in China, is also attending the exhibition for the second time. She emphasized the need to promote cultural tourism as recent policies have made it easy for more Indonesian friends to travel to China.
"Chengdu and Chongqing have become two of the most popular tourist destinations for Indonesia. A lot of people now are not only talking about Shanghai, but are also talking about Chengdu, visiting the pandas and also Chongqing, because of the landscape. I think it is a good start," said Avilia.
This year's fair has also attracted huge number of new participants showcasing quality products.
"This is my first time. It's a great opportunity that we are able to showcase our products and to let people know about Uganda and Ugandan culture," said Mukisa Joseph, a Ugandan exhibitor.
"The expectations about this fair is to meet many people in the coffee industry. So far we have had a lot of consumers who are interested in roasted coffee. I'm still expecting more," said Mutijima Emma, a Rwandan exhibitor.
An Uzbek exhibitor, who is also a newcomer, initially intended to use this platform to promote his goods, but unexpectedly met partners from many other countries and found potential business opportunities here.
"This is a good platform to see the different global products and see the Chinese market all together. I met so many different people, but I also met many foreign people who are interested in our products. So I call these kind of events more like a globalization event," said Asilbek Khonkhujaev, an Uzbek exhibitor.
The fair has attracted attendees from 85 countries and international organizations, with over 450 Fortune 500 enterprises and companies taking the lead in their respective industries.
Newcomers, old friends gather at CIFTIS to seek new opportunities
