China, Africa launch year of people-to-people exchanges

China and Africa have reaffirmed their shared belief that mutual learning between civilizations remains a vital source of development and solidarity, releasing a list of 58 key activities for the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges.

While addressing the opening ceremony, held on Thursday at the headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Foreign Minister Wang Yi emphasized that people-to-people exchanges constitute the most solid foundation of China-Africa friendship.

China-Africa cultural and social exchanges have already yielded tangible results. China has established 17 Luban Workshops across 15 African countries, training tens of thousands of skilled professionals. It has also signed tourism cooperation agreements with more than 30 African countries, with 34 African destinations now open to Chinese group tours.

Against a backdrop of mounting global turbulence, Wang said that China and Africa have an even greater need to uphold fairness and justice, strengthen solidarity, and deepen exchanges and cooperation.

Wang expressed China's readiness to expand unilateral opening-up toward Africa, turning its vast market into new opportunities for African countries. He also called for deeper mutual learning through enhanced exchanges on governance and modernization experiences.

African leaders at the ceremony expressed confidence that the year of people-to-people exchanges would usher in a new chapter in Africa-China relations, pledging to expand cooperation in culture, education, tourism, the arts and youth exchanges.

Nearly 600 people-to-people exchange activities will be held throughout the year under the theme Consolidate All-Weather Friendship, Pursue a Shared Dream of Modernization, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a news briefing on Friday.

On Thursday, Wang also held the ninth China-AU Strategic Dialogue with AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf at the AU headquarters.

Wang is currently on a six-day visit to Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania and Lesotho, marking the 36th consecutive year that Africa has been the destination for Chinese foreign ministers' first overseas trip of the year.

During the dialogue, Wang said the long-standing diplomatic tradition reflects both the continuity of China-Africa friendship and the stability of China's Africa policy, and demonstrates solidarity among developing countries.

Zhou Yuyuan, deputy director of the Center for West Asian and African Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, said putting people first is both the starting point and ultimate goal of China-Africa cooperation.

As the world's youngest continent, Africa's demographic potential can be unlocked by empowering youth and women and broader segments of society.

China will continue to inject stability and certainty into Sino-African cooperation and global engagement with Africa, giving the partnership growing significance in contrast to hegemonic and self-serving approaches, Zhou added.

zhaojia@chinadaily.com.cn