‘China-South Africa relationship at its best in history’, says head of visiting Chinese delegation Li Yunze
Director of China’s National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA), Li Yunze, who is on a visit to South Africa has pledged Beijing’s support to assist Pretoria to achieve its economic goals through working together on programs like the Belt and Road Initiative and the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
The embassy of China in South Africa, led by Ambassador Wu Peng, hosted a briefing dissecting the outcomes of the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, where Li was given an opportunity to decode what the conclusions mean for China-South Africa relations in the new era.
“For the Chinese people, South Africa is a partner in mutual assistance and in the same boat through thick and thin, and the two sides have shared a common vision in the struggle for national liberation, have supported each other in advancing national development and construction, and have united and collaborated in the pursuit of international fairness and justice.
“We look forward to today's exchange of ideas to inspire more common ground, help each other to pursue modernisation, and contribute more to the development of China-South Africa all-round strategic cooperative partnership in the new era,” Li told the ceremony which was attended by think tanks, media representatives, political party officials and members of the academia.
As 2024 marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Li said under the leadership of the CPC, China's national landscape has undergone remarkable changes, completing in just a few decades the industrialisation process that Western developed countries have gone through in hundreds of years.
“We have created two miracles, namely, rapid economic development and long-term social stability, achieved the first 100-year goal on schedule, and historically solved the problem of absolute poverty that had plagued China for thousands of years. China's gross domestic product (GDP) has grown from 67.9 billion Yuan in 1952, the first year for which statistics are available, to 126 trillion Yuan in 2023, with an average annual growth rate of 7.9 percent,” said Li.
He said China's share of the world economy has grown from 1.7% in 1978, when statistics were first available, to about 17% in 2023, contributing more than 30% to the world economy.
“China has made great strides to catch up with the times, relying on reform and opening up. During the past 10-plus years under the leadership of President Xi Jinping, it has also been reform and opening up that has ensured historic achievements and changes in the cause of the party and the country. Not long ago, the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was held successfully,” he said.
He said the plenary session drew a grand blueprint for further deepening reform in a comprehensive manner and promoting Chinese modernisation, and putting forward clear requirements for pursuing high-standard opening-up to the global community, “thus demonstrating the strong determination of the CPC to carry out reform constantly”.
“China is ready to work with South Africa to firmly grasp the key deployment of the plenary session on opening up to the outside world and to implement the important consensus reached by the heads of State of the two countries. We are ready to work with South Africa to deepen cooperation within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative and FOCAC, and to help South Africa to achieve the goals of its National Development Plan 2030,” said Li.
He said China is willing to encourage more enterprises to “invest and prosper” in South Africa. He added that China has made moves to welcomes more South African high-quality products to enter the Chinese market.
For more than a decade in a row, China has been South Africa’s biggest trading partner. In the first half of this year, China imported US$17.3 billion of goods from South Africa, a year-on-year increase of 10.7%.
Statistics from the Chinese embassy show that more than 200 Chinese companies have invested or started businesses in South Africa, creating over 400,000 local jobs.
Ambassador Wu said there are a lot of spin-offs for South Africa from the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC, economically.
“I believe that today’s briefing will be helpful for South African friends to better understand the third plenary session, the Chinese economic and social development and the implications for South Africa,” he said.
“Implementation is the key. There is still a lot of work to do. Talking about attracting Chinese investors, whether we can create a business-friendly environment is key. It does not only depend on Chinese side, but also on the South African side. Thank you so much.”
The African National Congress (ANC) delegation at the event on Tuesday was led by National Executive Committee member Febe Potgieter-Gqubule and SA Communist Party delegation was led by Joyce Moloi-Moropa.
IOL