BEIJING, July 3 (Xinhua) -- Changsha County, an inland locality in central China's Hunan Province also called Xingsha, saw local economic and trade cooperation with Africa burgeoning during the Third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo (CAETE).
On July 1 when the county hosted the First Xingsha·Africa Economic and Trade Exchange Meeting during the expo, contracts for 14 related programs involving investment of 1.5 billion U.S. dollars were signed, marking new China-Africa cooperation in sectors such as manufacturing, energy, urban infrastructure, agricultural industrialization and the tertiary industry.
As a county whose foreign trade approached 130 billion yuan and trade with Africa partners exceeded 7.0 billion yuan in 2022, Xingsha has been unlocking the potential of opening up-driven development in recent years.
To expand the share of local engineering machinery, electronic information, agriculture and other industries in China-Africa economic and trade cooperation, Changsha County has made unremitting efforts to encourage grouped going global of advantageous industries.
Engineering machinery giant Sany Group is a vivid example of how local manufacturers explored the African market. Since 2002 when its first batch of land levelers were exported to Morocco, the company has been operating on the continent for 20 years and reaped nearly 17 billion yuan of sales revenue in Africa, ranking the first among all its Chinese peers.
Thanks to the 40-plus years of friendship with African nations, Changsha County inked during the meeting a memorandum of understanding for sister regions with Rwamagana in the Eastern Province of Rwanda to further the China-Africa friendship. The two sides pledged to communicate and cooperate in economic and trade, sci-tech, culture, sports, agriculture, and tourism sectors.
Meanwhile, Changsha County chamber of commerce for boosting China-Africa economic and trade was inaugurated on July 1 to serve as a bridge to connect the county with its African counterparts to spur related investment and opening up.
Fu Xuming, secretary with CPC Changsha County committee, said the county is striving to provide the most convenient business environment, heart-warming services and excellent working conditions for enterprises and friends from Africa to invest, live and work comfortably in Changsha County.
By joining hands with Africa, it will also contribute more to China-Africa cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative and in building a community of shared future, Fu noted. (Edited by Duan Jing with Xinhua Silk Road, duanjing@xinhua.org)
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