African countries welcome win-win relationship with China: Ramaphosa

CAPE TOWN, SEPT. 6 — African countries welcome the win-win relationship with China and value the support China provides to them, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Thursday.
Speaking upon his return from China where he paid a state visit and attended the 2018 Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) earlier this week, Ramaphosa described the forum as a huge success.
Ramaphosa said South Africa was honored to have co-chaired the Beijing FOCAC with China.
Many African countries have a sense that they have China as a meaningful partner which wants to assist fellow partners to reach higher levels of industrialization, said Ramaphosa.
African countries wish to exercise their right to development through industrialization, he said, adding that African countries and China also realize the need to address the issue of trade imbalance between them.
He said South Africa and China also entered into several agreements and signed a number of Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) during his state visit.
These agreements pave the way for economic growth, educational opportunities and job creation in South Africa, said Ramaphosa.
The president called on South African companies to work in partnership, consolidate South African interests on the African continent and to collaborate with China on projects in line with South Africa’s development and integration objectives.
Ramaphosa said South Africa is also seeking help from Chinese technology giant Huawei to explore innovative ways to strengthen the fight against crime through the use of modern technology.
For this purpose, Ramaphosa said he paid a courtesy call at Huawei’s Beijing Executive Briefing Center, where he met Huawei group founder Ren Zhengfei, during his visit to China.
Ramaphosa also travelled to Hangzhou where he visited the headquarters of the leading e-commerce group, Alibaba, and met the group’s founder Jack Ma.
The visit was aimed at assisting the South African small business sector, especially in rural communities, Ramaphosa said.
Alibaba is at its final stage of planning opportunities for South Africans, especially youth, to help South Africa leverage the fourth industrial revolution, according to Ramaphosa. – XINHUA