China, African countries pledge to implement Beijing Action Plan

BEIJING, July 20 (Xinhua) -- China and African countries on Friday pledged to ensure the full implementation of the proposals enshrined in the Beijing Action Plan (2013-2015) of the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

Foreign Ministers of China, Egypt and South Africa made the remarks at a joint press conference in Beijing.

During the two-day FOCAC ministerial meeting, two documents were released -- the Beijing Declaration and Beijing Action Plan (2013-2015).

China-Africa cooperation has brought substantial benefits to both sides, said Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, adding that China will continue to promote the cooperation with sincerity, mutual respect and equality.

"China has always been a good and reliable friend to Africa," said Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr, noting that the FOCAC has become an effective platform for China-Africa dialogue and a new brand of South-South cooperation.

In the past three years, Egypt and China have co-chaired the FOCAC and the forum has further enhanced political coordination and economic cooperation between Africa and China, he said.

He congratulated South Africa on assuming the new presidency of the FOCAC and voiced the belief that the forum would take bigger strides under the leadership of South Africa.

South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane applauded the success of the Fifth Ministerial Meeting of the FOCAC, noting that the meeting had made important contributions to the development of Africa-China ties.

Nkoana-Mashabane said, as the new co-host of the FOCAC, South Africa will do its utmost to carry out the objectives of the Beijing Action Plan(2013-2015), deepen African countries' engagement in the activities of the forum and make the forum more compatible with the proposals of the African Union (AU).

She thanked China for its support on the transnational and trans-regional infrastructure development in Africa as well as the five new measures announced by Chinese President Hu Jintao at the opening ceremony of the FOCAC ministerial meeting.

The five new measures are expanding investment and financing to support sustainable development in Africa, increasing assistance to Africa, supporting the African integration process and help enhance the capacity of overall development, enhancing people-to-people friendship, and promoting peace and stability in Africa.

"We thank China for having committed to this very important five key priority areas without conditions," she said, adding that the measures are a clear indication of China's willingness to deepening its cooperation with Africa.

South Africa will work closely with China in ensuring that these measures are realized for the benefit of both sides, she added.

She also welcomed China's announcement of the 20 billion U.S. dollars of credit to African countries, together with many other areas of cooperation in science and technology, as well as the information and communication technology, which will further help strengthen Africa's industrialization processes.

The Six Ministerial Conference of the FOCAC will be held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in the fourth quarter of 2015, according to Nkoana-Mashabane.

The FOCAC is a collective consultation and dialogue mechanism between China and African countries launched in 2000. This year's forum runs from Thursday to Friday.