The Forum on China- Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has reached an advanced stage of South- South cooperation which conveys an ideal solution to African issues and problems, said a Sudanese diplomat on Friday.
"This type of cooperation would lead to a shift in international economic relations in general, which might impel countries, organizations and other economic blocs to follow the example of China," ambassador Rahmatullah Muhammad Othman, director general of bilateral and regional relations department in the Sudanese Foreign Ministry and head of Sudan delegation to the Senior Officials Meeting of FOCAC held in Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Friday.
"This has already begun in some countries, such as France, Canada, India and other countries, as they follow suits with the same approach China has adopted in Sino-Africa cooperation," said Othman.
He noted that what is essential for the development of the FOCAC in the next phase is to effectively implement what has been agreed upon, saying "the action plan and the declaration passed over the previous summits have clearly identified goals and objectives for movements."
"We are pleased with what has been implemented so far since the Beijing Summit in 2006 by the Chinese side, at least Sudan is very satisfied. We have been able to achieve all what we agreed upon in the last forum," said Othman.
"The real crisis facing African countries is the lack of financial resources for development," said Othman, expressing his belief that during the Sharm el-Sheikh meeting financial aids will be increased for the further development of Africa.
The Sudanese official denied the claim that Africa-China cooperation, as some people said, goes in one direction, and that his country, for example, has huge development projects with China.
In regard to the claims of some countries that China is exploiting Africa's economic interests to achieve its own interest, Othman said that these claims arose mainly due to the cause of competition, as these countries used to have political and economic influence on the continent.
The fourth ministerial meeting of the FOCAC will be held in Sharm el-Sheikh from Nov. 8 to 9.
The main agenda of the meeting is to review the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and the Program for China-Africa Cooperation in Economic and Social Development, two documents adopted during the first ministerial meeting of the forum held in Beijing.
The gathering is also to explore new initiatives and measures of China-Africa cooperation in such areas of priority as human resources development, agriculture, infrastructure development, investment and trade.
The forum was jointly proposed and established by China and more than 40 African countries in 2000.
The FOCAC, a collective consultation and dialogue mechanism between China and African countries, is the first of its kind in the history of China-Africa relationship. It is a major and future- oriented move taken by both sides in the context of South-South cooperation to seek common development.
Since the launch of FOCAC in 2000, three ministerial conferences have been held in Beijing, Addis Ababa and Beijing respectively. |
