On September 5, 2024, President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech titled “Joining Hands to Promote Modernization and Build a Community with a Shared Future” at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. His address marked a significant milestone, opening a new chapter in the all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the modern era.
From advocating sincerity, affinity, and good faith to promoting a balanced approach to justice and interests, China and Africa have built a unique framework of cooperation. This collaboration has evolved into a China-Africa community with a shared future that embodies the principles of shared responsibility, win-win cooperation, cultural prosperity, common security, and harmonious coexistence.
The transition to an all-weather China-Africa community in the new era proves that both regions are fellow travelers on the path to modernization, driven by firm beliefs, practical actions, and concrete results. Together, they have demonstrated a cooperative model based on mutual trust, shared challenges, mutual assistance, and win-win outcomes for developing nations.
Since the establishment of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2000, China and Africa have, over 24 years, continuously explored, accumulated, and innovated their approaches. Today, their understanding of modernization has reached new heights.
While each developing country pursues its own path to modernization, shared values and common goals emerge. How do these paths differ or converge? How should the individual characteristics of modernization be treated to harness their complementary advantages?
In his speech, President Xi Jinping offered a nuanced interpretation of modernization, outlining that in the new era, it should be fair and equitable, open and win-win, people-centered, diverse and inclusive, ecologically friendly, and peaceful.
To promote modernization, it is essential to balance universal principles with specific national characteristics and independence with mutually beneficial cooperation.
Modernization must prioritize the well-being of all people, ensuring that even the least developed countries have opportunities to grow and share in the benefits of progress. Additionally, modernization must address both material and spiritual needs, fostering openness and inclusivity, and allowing for the peaceful coexistence of diverse civilizations. Furthermore, it requires harmony between humanity and nature, as well as peaceful coexistence among nations.
China and Africa’s understanding of modernization aligns with the three major global initiatives and vividly depicts the vision of building a China-Africa community with a shared future. This also contributes to the broader goal of creating a global community with a shared future for all of humanity.
The Ten Partners Action Plan lays out a comprehensive strategy for capacity-building at the national, political party, and individual levels, considering factors such as governance, trade, investment, industrial development, public welfare, education, culture, green development, and security. This plan offers clear goals and specific measures, addressing key areas of China-Africa cooperation. Governance capabilities, in particular, serve as a crucial foundation for modernization.
The summit also provides an opportunity to deepen the exchange of governance experiences between China and Africa. For African nations, enhancing governance capabilities will play a critical role in their journey toward modernization.
This is a continuation of the principle of “teaching a man to fish” rather than merely “giving a man a fish.” By developing initiatives such as the African Leadership Academy to nurture local talent, China tailors its support to African needs and characteristics, ensuring effective knowledge sharing.
The creation of the China-Africa Development Knowledge Network will provide intellectual resources and human capital for the modernization of the Global South. This initiative offers developing countries alternatives beyond Western models, empowering them to exercise greater autonomy and creativity.
Additionally, under the guidance of the Global Security Cooperation Initiative, China and Africa will strengthen cooperation in security, enhancing the training of military and law enforcement personnel to safeguard national stability.
As China and Africa collaborate to promote modernization, the pace of economic openness will accelerate, with a focus on higher-level cooperation in trade, industrial development, and infrastructure connectivity.
China’s decision to grant zero-tariff treatment to all least-developed countries with diplomatic ties, including 33 African nations, offers significant market opportunities for African products, fostering greater understanding and acceptance between the two regions. African small and medium-sized enterprises, brimming with potential, will benefit from China-Africa connectivity initiatives, positioning themselves for future growth.
Further, China and Africa will collaborate in cutting-edge fields such as nuclear technology, satellite remote sensing, and space exploration, while supporting Africa’s green development through clean energy projects. These efforts not only aid Africa’s sustainable growth but also infuse high-tech solutions into its modernization journey.
From food aid to the construction of the African Center for Disease Control and Prevention, China-Africa cooperation touches on all aspects of life, ensuring not only survival but also improved quality of life and spiritual enrichment. Notably, cultural exchange and education projects provide African citizens with development opportunities, enabling them to contribute to national progress. Vocational education, in particular, will produce the technical talent needed for Africa’s modernization in agriculture and industry.
By training 60,000 African women and youth, China aims to boost literacy rates and empower a new generation of leaders who will shape Africa’s future. These targeted programs emphasize the interdependence between human and national development, reinforcing the value of people-centered governance across Africa.
All these efforts are made tangible through concrete measures. President Xi Jinping’s speech emphasizes the human element of cooperation, with the phrase “hand in hand” repeatedly surfacing to underscore the collaborative spirit.
As he stated, “No one can be left behind on the road to modernization, and no country can be left behind.” This captures the essence of modernization in the Global South: humanity shares a common destiny, and only through collective effort can we overcome challenges, allowing underdeveloped countries to achieve prosperity.
Ultimately, the modernization process in the Global South will strengthen cooperation among Southern nations, promote the free flow of development resources, and encourage more balanced and equitable North-South cooperation, fulfilling the global aspiration for a better future.
Li Hongfeng: Dean of the School of African Studies at Beijing Foreign Studies University
