STORY: China-Africa expo unlocks new cooperation potential
DATELINE: June 30, 2023
LENGTH: 00:05:03
LOCATION: CHANGSHA, China
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Africa
2. various of example projects of Africa and China cooperation
3. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): Voice of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Speech at opening ceremony of 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): Voice of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Speech at opening ceremony of 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit
5. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): JING JIANHUA, Founder of Own Master Coffee in Hunan Province
6. SOUNDBITE 4 (English): HOSEA BULUS, Staff member of Kilimall International Limited, Changsha, Hunan Province
7. SOUNDBITE 5 (Chinese): XIANG YUANHE, Marketing director, Kilimall International Limited
8. SOUNDBITE 6 (Swahili): Voice of MWALIMU ZAHARI, Fisherman in Kibuyuni Village, Kenya
9. SOUNDBITE 7 (English): GERISHON IKIARA, International relations scholar, University of Nairobi
10. SOUNDBITE 8 (English): CHIPOKA MULENGA, Zambian Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry

STORYLINE:

With an area of about 30 million square kilometers, Africa is the second largest continent in the world, a place featuring unique natural landscapes and cultural customs.

Attaching great importance to China-Africa relations, Chinese President Xi Jinping has been consistently pushing for the building of the China-Africa community with a shared future.

In Sept. 2018, at the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Xi proposed building an even closer China-Africa community with a shared future.

(subtitle)
At the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) held in September 2018, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech titled "Work Together for Common Development and a Shared Future".

SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): Voice of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Speech at opening ceremony of 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit
"China will work with Africa to achieve our shared goal of building a closer China-Africa community with a shared future and turn it into a pacesetter for building such a community for mankind."

The China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo (CAETE), currently underway in China's Hunan Province, is held every other year.

First launched in 2019, the expo has become a major platform for strengthening economic and trade cooperation between China and African countries.

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): Voice of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Speech at opening ceremony of 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit
"We have decided to open a China-Africa economic and trade expo in China; we encourage Chinese companies to increase investment in Africa."

The China-Africa expo has further opened up the Chinese market to African businesses, allowing Chinese consumers easier access to such products as South African oranges, Namibian oysters, and Ethiopian coffee.

Jing Jianhua, the owner of a coffee company in Hunan, has been introducing high-quality African products to China.

Thanks to the China-Africa expo, Jing has seen the cost of raw coffee beans in his company reduced by 15 to 20 percent.

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): JING JIANHUA, Founder of Own Master Coffee in Hunan Province
"With the help of the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo and the China (Hunan) Pilot Free Trade Zone, we are able to directly procure coffee beans from Africa, resulting in a reduction in costs. This enables us to offer consumers a cup of high-quality coffee at an affordable price, while also fostering China-Africa friendship through a simple cup of coffee.

Kilimall is an online shopping mall founded in Kenya in 2014.
Leveraging the China-Africa expo in Hunan, Kilimall has become an online expo platform for cooperation and mutual exchange.

SOUNDBITE 4 (English): HOSEA BULUS, Staff member of Kilimall International Limited, Changsha, Hunan Province
"Because of the high technology in China, it can help Africa bridge the gap of supply chain, as well as technology. So Kilimall, because Africa has to get a lot of goods from China, so Kilimall comes in between Africa and China, to bring these goods to Africa."

In 2019, the company launched KiliSelect, an e-commerce platform selling African products to China.

SOUNDBITE 5 (Chinese): XIANG YUANHE, Marketing director, Kilimall International Limited
"We genuinely believe that the flow of goods, people and currency between China and Africa is increasingly convenient and smooth. We have full confidence in Kilimall. We also hope that more people will join us in focusing on Africa, and working together to improve the lives of both Chinese and African people."

SOUNDBITE 6 (Swahili): Voice of MWALIMU ZAHARI, Fisherman in Kibuyuni Village, Kenya
"I really appreciate the company for investing here, because it provides a big market for us. So we no longer need to worry about catching a large amount of fish but having no way to sell. Now the market is just here."

SOUNDBITE 7 (English): GERISHON IKIARA, International relations scholar, University of Nairobi
"It (China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo) has gone on very smoothly, attended by almost all African countries and it has helped even Africa to be able to coordinate their own transport and trade activities within, so that they can be able to negotiate better with China."

SOUNDBITE 8 (English): CHIPOKA MULENGA, Zambian Minister of Commerce, Trade and Industry
"Yes, Zambia is looking forward to participating in the expo. Definitely, my country is very eager to make sure that we expand our market share and investment wooing from different parts of the world.

Since the inception of the China-Africa expo in 2019, China has kept expanding its imports from Africa.

During the second China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo, 135 deals were sealed with a value of 22.9 billion U.S. dollars.

(subtitle)
The third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo is held from June 29 to July 2 in Changsha, Hunan Province.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Changsha, China.
(XHTV)