BEIJING, Nov 30, (Asia Free Press) President of China Xi Jinping announced that we would provide an additional 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to Africa and pledged to jointly implement nine programs on China-Africa future cooperation, according to Xinhua’s sources.
“I am assured that the mutual efforts of China and Africa will make this Forum On China-Africa Conference (FOCAC) Conference a full of success, one that shall pool the mighty strength of the 2.7 billion Chinese and Africans and guide us toward a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future,” Xi said while addressing the opening ceremony of the Eighth Ministerial Conference of (FOCAC) via video link, Xinhua reported.
The conference, scheduled for Nov. 29-30 in Senegal’s capital of Dakar, is expected to evaluate the implementation of the outcomes of the 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit and open up new prospects for China-Africa cooperation.
“In addition, China will undertake 10 medical and health projects for African countries, and send 1,500 medical professionals and public health experts to Africa to curb the disease in a better way,” Xi added in his virtual address.
By Nov 12, 2021, China had provided over 1.7 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to more than 110 countries and organizations, including 50 African countries and the AU Commission, according to media reports.
Cavince Adhere, a Kenya-based international relations scholar, has said, “the COVID-19 pandemic has served to highlight the strong partnership between China and Africa in the health sector.”
He also added, “China now ranks as the top supplier of COVID-19 vaccines to African region to save their population and economies from the impacts of the global health crisis.”
