China pledges $60bn to develop Africa

President Buhari also said he had considered the former President’s strong commitment to the unity of Nigeria and Africa before choosing him. “The continent would want to be assisted to put up infrastructure such as rail, roads and electricity generating plants that service say an entire region”, he said.

“It is an extraordinary meeting and together we have made history”, said Xi through an interpreter.

The leaders met for what South African President Jacob Zuma dubbed “historic” talks, aimed at bolstering ties between the continent and its major trading partner.

The two documents, Xi said, represent an all-round planning for future development of China-Africa relations and pragmatic cooperation in various areas.

There have been detractors who constantly insinuate that China’s intentions in Africa could be similar to those of the colonialists, the president told reporters on the sidelines of the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).”So if the balance keeps widening and we can’t export, the overall trade will go down and our ability to import will be at risk”.

In a declaration adopted in Johannesburg the leaders pledged to “continue to support each other on security matters and maintain peace and security”.

But it’s a partnership that hasn’t always been described as equal – with China accused of plundering Africa’s rich resources.

Twenty-five agreements worth a combined value of $16.5 billion (more than R190 billion) have been signed during a business forum between China and African countries, says Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies. This is likely to lead to a surge in Chinese direct investment which had already scaled $30 billion previous year.

The Chinese leader Xi also vowed greater cooperation with African countries in the fight against violent extremism.

With China’s recent economic woes, the Washington DC-based economist was expecting a more modest fund.

“Currently, both China and Africa are at the crucial stage of development and have formulated ambitious development strategies”.

The next year will mark the 60 anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries, Ismail said. China and Africa are moving forward in the same direction. The summit, this time, has been a resounding success.

He said China was committed to the principles of win-win situation that would promote growth and development of both parties.

In an effort to soothe those concerns, Mr Xi unveiled a three-year, 10-point plan that he said would address three bottlenecks holding back Africa’s development.

President Zuma paid tribute to President Xi for the new measures and also acknowledged, “the tangible contribution of the People’s Republic of China’s with regard to peacekeeping in Africa”.

According to economist Aubrey Hruby, the $60bn pledge is three times as much as the package promised at the last China Africa cooperation summit in 2012. China also actively engages in the worldwide counter-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden and waters off the Somali coast.

If one added the US60 billion for Africa plus the US8-9 billion package for South Africa which Xi announced on Wednesday during his state visit to South Africa, that amounted to a total package of almost US70 billion.