Commentary : Opening New Chapter for China-Africa relations and Embarking on A New Journey of Modernization Hand in Hand

Further deepening reform comprehensively is the fundamental impetus for promoting Chinese modernization. Looking back at history, The 3^rd plenary session of the 11^th CPC Central Committee ushered in a new period: one of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization. The 3^rd plenary session of the 18^th CPC Central Committee marked the start of a new journey of comprehensively deepening reform in the new era with systematic and holistic plans. Over the past forty years, China has freed its mind, sought truth from facts, tried and reformed courageously, growing to become the world's second-largest economy, with nearly 800 million poor people lifted out of poverty, and a middle-income group of more than 400 million. In 2023, China's GDP exceed 126 trillion yuan, with the economic increment of more than 6 trillion yuan, equal to the total economic output of a medium-sized country in one year. Looking ahead, to deal with complex developments both at home and abroad, adapt to the new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, and live up to the new expectations of our people, it is vital that China continues to advance reform. The 3^rdPlenary Session of the 20^th CPCCentral Committee has made a comprehensive plan to further deepen reform, focusing on the fields of economy, politics, culture, rule of law, people's wellbeing, ecology, security and so on, identifying more than 300 major reform initiatives, and laying down a blueprint of reforms to be carried out by 2029 when the People's Republic of China marks its 80^th anniversary. China's further deepening of reforms comprehensively will surely open up broad prospects for Chinese modernization and provide strong impetus for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Opening up is the calling card of Chinese modernization. H.E. President Xi Jinping stressedthat “only an open China will become a modernized China”. Since the 18^th CPC National Congress, China has pursued a more proactive strategy of opening up, and made historic achievements and changes. The construction of a strong trading nation has made solid strides, with the scale of trade in goods being the largest in the world for seven consecutive years, and the scale of trade in services ranking among the world's front-runners; the status of two-way investment as a big country has been increasingly consolidated, with the structure of foreign investment being continuously optimised, and outward investment cooperation developingsmoothly; a series of fruitful results have been achieved in multilateral,bilateral and regional economic and trade cooperation. Confronted with the de-globalization measures takenby a few countries, such as “decoupling”, “disrupting supply chains” and “building small yards with high fences”, China's determination to persist in opening up will not be shaken, China's pace of promoting opening up at a higher level will not be stalled, and China's commitment to building an open world economy will not be altered. The 3^rdPlenary Session of the 20^th CPCCentral Committee has adopted a series of measures for high-standard opening up. China is committed to promoting the high-quality cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative,implementing Global Development Initiative, Global Civilization Initiative, and Global Civilization Initiative, and joining hands with other countries to build acommunity of shared furture for mankind. China will furtherhelp other developing countriesimplement both major signature projects and “small but beautiful” public welfare projects. China willopen its commodity, services, capital, and labor markets to the outside world in an orderly manner and unilaterally furtheropen itsmarkets to the world’s least developed countries. China, which is on the path of Chinese-style modernization, will provide more certainty for the world with its own stability and more new opportunities with its new development.

H.E. President Xi Jinping has stressed that development is an inalienable right of all countries, not a privilege reserved for a few. China and Africa together isa community with a shared future.We are peers and good partners on the road to modernization. China and Africa must work together to create a sound environment for realizing our respective development visions. While pursuing its own development, China has always firmly supported Africa in exploring its own development path, and has always extended support and assistance toAfrican friends to the limits of its capacity. The 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) will be held in Beijing from September 4 to 6. The leaders of China and Africa will gather around the theme "Joining Hands to Advance Modernization and Build a High-Level China-Africa Community with a Shared Future" to celebrate friendship and chart the way forward for cooperation. This marks another grand reunion of the China-Africa big family after six years. It is also the largest diplomatic event China has hosted in recent years, with the highest attendance of foreign leaders, including H.E. President Barrow. It is believed that the Summit will deepen the strategic coordination between China and Africa, consolidate extensive consensus for the two sides to meet challenges, build a broad platform for sharing development opportunities, and inject a strong impetus for solidarity and cooperation in the “Global South”. China is ready to seize this important opportunity with Africa to embark on a new journey toward modernization together, further elevate the building of a China-Africa community with a shared future to new heights, and write a new chapter in rpromoting mutual understanding, affinity and friendship between the people of China and Africa. Together, they will send a powerful message of Africa and China advancing world modernization and rejuvenation of the “global South”.

Although The Gambia is not a founding member of theFOCAC family, since its joining, it has actively and deeply participated in the FOCAC cooperation in various fieldsand deepened its friendship with China, achieving a series of fruitful outcomes. The International Conference Centre plays a key role in supportingThe Gambia’s successfulhosting of the OIC Summit this year. The URR Road and Bridges have successfully connected the “last mile” of The Gambia's national highway network. China and the Gambia have joined hands to fight pandemics andpromote economic recovery. People-to-people exchanges at various levels and in various fields have contributed to the friendship of two peoples. China looks forward to working with The Gambia, taking the FOCAC Summit as an opportunity to further deepen mutual political trust, strengthen the exchange of experience in governance and development strategies, and open a new chapter in China-Gambia relations, so as to better benefit the two peoples.