China, Africa to hold summit in S.Africa in December

BEIJING - The summit of leaders from China and African countries will be held in early December in South Africa, Chinese and South African foreign ministers announced Friday in Beijing.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his South African counterpart Maite Nkoana-Mashabane jointly announced that heads of state from both countries agreed to upgrade the sixth ministerial meeting of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) to a summit, the second one after the Beijing summit in 2006.

The heads of state of the two countries will invite African state leaders to attend the summit, which will be held on December 4-5.

The agenda was announced after Chinese President Xi Jinping and his South African counterpart Jacob Zuma held a meeting Friday in Beijing, at which they vowed to make the summit a success.

Wang said the purpose of the FOCAC is to achieve common development and prosperity of China and Africa. China will take the needs of Africa's development and all African countries' aspirations into full consideration.

"We will work with the host nation of South Africa to prepare for the summit. We believe that it will become a historic summit and a milestone in the history of China-Africa solidarity and cooperation," Wang said.

Nkoana-Mashabane said a political statement of the summit will send a message that China-Africa cooperation will help Africa fulfill the dream of industrialization and economic integration.