The Tanzania Trade Development Authority (TanTrade) said in a statement issued on Wednesday that the country is set to participate in the first China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo to be held in Changsha, the capital of central China’s Hunan province between 18th and 20th June, 2019.
The body has also urged the local companies to grab the `golden chance` provided by the trade expo which will focus on trade, investment, finance, agriculture, mining, energy, tourism and infrastructure.
Officials will sign bilateral agreements during the exhibition, engage in investment promotions, and establish a “new mechanism” for future economic cooperation.
The expo is part of a slew of promises made by president Xi Jinping during last September’s Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing. During his speech to African leaders, President Xi proposed eight initiatives aimed at pursuing a “win-win” strategy giving new impetus to economic, political, and security collaboration. He had specifically pointed to the changing global dynamics, noting how the international order was changing and emerging nations were rising.
To solidify relations, Xi had said Beijing will launch an industrial promotion initiative aimed at encouraging Chinese companies to increase their investments in Africa. China also promised to exempt some poorer nations from debt, increase imports from Africa, help promote African brand products, support the African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA), and give 100,000 scholarship and training opportunities to young Africans.
Xi also said Beijing will exempt least developed African states from paying exhibition fees at its annual high-level China International Import Expo.
China’s commitment to balancing the “win-win” strategy with Africa came as it faced allegations from American officials and others of encouraging dependency and debt. After all, Chinese lending to the continent jumped tenfold in the last five years, a borrowing spree that many worry could push debt limits to unsustainable levels.
Beijing, however, pushed against these sentiments, committing Tshs.138 trillion ($60 billion) in 2018 to development projects in Africa over the next three years. President Xi also said China won’t impose its will or interfere in African countries’ internal affairs—a point praised by leaders like Tanzania’s president John Magufuli.
Also read: Tanzania to open consulate in Guangzhou trade hub
