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Tag: china

  • African nations now send more money to China

    African nations now send more money to China

    • They receive less in new loans

    China’s role as a leading financier to developing nations has shifted over the past decade, with new loans to poorer countries falling sharply while debt repayments continue to rise, according to analysis released by ONE Data.

    The inaugural report by the ONE Data initiative found that many low- and middle-income countries — particularly in Africa — are now transferring more funds to China in debt payments than they receive in fresh financing from the world’s second-largest economy.

    The swing has coincided with a surge in net financing from multilateral institutions, which have become the main source of development finance globally once debt-service outflows are taken into account.

    Multilateral lenders increased net financing by 124% over the past decade and now provide 56% of net flows, equivalent to $379 billion between 2020 and 2024, the analysis found.

    “The fact that there’s less lending coming in, but that previous lending from China still needs to be serviced — that’s the source of the outflows,” said David McNair, executive director at ONE Data.

    Africa has experienced the most dramatic reversal in Chinese finance. It went from receiving $30 billion to paying out $22 billion, a $52 billion swing.

    Africa has experienced the most dramatic reversal in Chinese finance. It went from receiving $30 billion to paying out $22 billion, a $52 billion swing.

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    In 2020-24, the most recent period for which data is available, Africa saw the largest impact, with an inflow of $30 billion in 2015-19 turning to an outflow of $22 billion.

    The data does not include cuts that took effect in 2025. The closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development last year and a drop in allocations from other developed countries has already hit developing economies, especially in Africa.

    Once 2025 data becomes available, it is likely to show a large drop in Official Development Assistance flows, said McNair.

    He said the trend was “a net negative” for African nations, as many governments face difficulties funding public services and investment – but would at the same time promote domestic accountability as governments rely less on external financing.

    The report also highlighted a ⁠broader decline in bilateral finance flows and private external debt – also trends likely to be exacerbated by aid cuts from 2025 onwards.

    Meanwhile, a separate piece of research suggests China’s overseas deal-making activity rebounded in 2025, according to a report published by the Griffith Asia Institute.

  • China’s population in another free fall

    China’s population in another free fall

    • Birth rate drops to lowest since 1949

    A decade after ending China’s longtime one-child policy, authorities are pushing a range of ideas and policies to encourage more births — ranging from cash subsidies to taxing condoms to eliminating a tax on matchmakers and daycare centres.

    The efforts haven’t paid off yet. At least, that’s what population figures released yesterday show for the world’s second-most populous nation. China’s population of 1.4 billion continued to shrink for the fourth straight year, new statistics show. Population in 2025 was 1.404 billion, three million less than previous year.

    Measured another way, birth rate in 2025 — 5.63 per 1,000 people — is the lowest since 1949, the year Mao Zedong’s Communists overthrew the Nationalists and began running China. Figures before that were not available.

    China was long the world’s populous nation until 2023, when it was surpassed by regional neighbour and sometime rival, India. Yesterday’s statistics show the stark demographic pressures it faced as it tries to pivot from a problem it is working hard to overcome: status as a nation with a growing but transitional economy that, as is often said, is “getting old before it gets rich.”

    The number of new babies born was just 7.92 million in 2025, a decline of 1.62 million, or 17%, from the previous year. The latest birth numbers show that the slight tick upward in 2024 was not a lasting trend. Births declined for seven years in a row through 2023.

    Most families cite the costs and pressure of raising a child in a highly competitive society as significant hurdles that now loom larger in the face of an economic downturn that has impacted households struggling to meet their living costs.

    Across the region, “it’s these big structural issues which are much harder to tackle, whether it’s housing, and work and getting a job and getting started in life and expectations around education…,” said Stuart Gietel-Basten, director of the Center for Aging Science at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. “It’s gonna be difficult to make a major change in those number of births until those are addressed.”

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    Another potential factor in the numbers, at least for 2025: Last year in China was the year of the snake, considered one of the least favored years for having a child under the Chinese zodiac. The government’s official Xinhua News Agency, however, did say early last year — perhaps optimistically — that the snake “is shaking off its negative connotations.”

    Like many other countries in Asia, China has faced a declining fertility rate, or the average number of babies a woman is expected to have in her lifetime. While the government does not regularly publish a fertility rate, last saying it was 1.3 in 2020, experts have estimated it is now around 1. Both figures are far below the 2.1 rate that would maintain the size of China’s population.

    For decades, the Chinese government barred people from having more than one baby and often sanctioned those who did — a policy that produced more than two generations of only children. In 2015, the government raised the permitted amount of offspring to two and then, facing demographic pressure, further revised the limit to three in 2021.

    The push for more births is about the economy. China now has 323 million people over 60, or 23% of the entire population. That number has continued to rise, while the working-age population is shrinking, meaning there are fewer workers to support the older population.

    This demographic shift is happening while China is in the process of trying to transition away from labor-intensive industries like farming and manufacturing into a consumer-driven economy built with high-tech manufacturing.

    While China’s rapid development in manufacturing with high-tech and robotics can reduce the impact of a shrinking labor force, “the bigger concern is whether economic growth can stay afloat with a shrinking population,” said Gary Ng, senior economist for Asia Pacific at French investment bank Natixis.

    China reported a 5% annual economic growth for 2025  yesterday, based on official data. But some analysts expect growth to slow over the next few years.

  • China urges Canada to break from U.S. influence

    China urges Canada to break from U.S. influence

    • Carney visits Beijing

    As Canadian leader Mark Carney arrives in China yesterday, his hosts see an opportunity to peel the longtime U.S. ally away from their rival, at least a bit.

    China’s state media is calling on the Canadian government to set a foreign policy path independent of the United States — what it calls “strategic autonomy.”

    Canada has long been one of America’s closest allies, geographically and otherwise. But Beijing is hoping that President Donald Trump’s economic aggression — and, now, military action — against other countries will erode that longstanding relationship.

    The government bristled at former U.S. President Joe Biden’s efforts to strengthen relations with Europe, Australia, India, Canada and others to confront China. Now it sees an opportunity to try to loosen those ties, though it remains cautious about how far that will go.

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    Carney, for his part, has focused on trade, describing the trip to China as part of a move to forge new partnerships around the world to end Canada’s economic reliance on the American market. Trump has hit Canada with tariffs on its exports to the United States and suggested the vast, resource-rich country could become America’s 51st state.

    The Canadian prime minister, who took office last year, is seeking to revive a relationship with China that was marked with acrimony for more than six years under his predecessor, Justin Trudeau.

    The downturn in relations started with the arrest of a Chinese tech executive in late 2018 at America’s request and was fueled more recently by the Trudeau government’s decision in 2024 to follow Biden’s lead in imposing a 100% tariff on Chinese-made electric vehicles. China has retaliated for both that and a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum with its own tariffs on Canadian exports including canola, seafood and pork.

    “If the Canadian side reflects on the root causes of the setbacks in bilateral relations over the past few years — the previous Justin Trudeau government’s policies to contain China in lockstep with the United States — it will realize that it can avoid the same outcome by upholding its strategic autonomy in handling China-related issues,” the state-owned China Daily newspaper wrote in an editorial this week.

    “If Ottawa still chooses to subject its China policy to the will of Washington again in the future, it will only render its previous efforts to mend ties with Beijing in vain,” the English-language paper warned.

    The government-run Global Times said: “Perhaps it was the heavy price paid for blindly following the U.S. in imposing high tariffs on China that awakened Ottawa’s sense of strategic autonomy.”

    Canadian officials have said they expect Carney’s trip to produce progress on trade but not a definitive elimination of any tariffs.

    Chinese experts said the two countries could find common ground over the U.S. military intervention in oil-rich Venezuela that forcibly brought its president to New York to face charges and Trump’s subsequent statements that Greenland, a Danish territory, should come under U.S. control.

    “We can also see Canada’s current state of considerable unease towards the U.S.,” said Cui Shoujun, a foreign policy and Latin America expert at Renmin University of China. “If the U.S. can claim Greenland, might it then lay claim to Canada?”

    He also predicted that Trump’s move against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro would strengthen the strategic autonomy of Latin American countries to resist possible American interference in their affairs.

    But China remains realistic about how far countries such as Canada could swing in its direction, given their fears of China’s growing economic and military clout as well as their deep historical and cultural ties with the United States. They also have major differences with China over its booming exports and the threat they pose to employment in their countries, as well as over human rights and Taiwan.

    Zhu Feng, the dean of the School of International Studies at Nanjing University, cautioned against overestimating the importance of Carney’s visit to China, “because Canada is not only a neighbor of the United States but also an ally.”

    Trump’s pressure on traditional U.S. partners may open up some space for China to expand relations with them, but American allies will need to balance that with their continuing dependence on U.S. economic and military strength. They may be able to reduce that dependence somewhat in the short term — but it’s unlikely they will be to eliminate it for the foreseeable future.

  • Beyond rituals: Inside China’s Africa-First diplomacy

    Beyond rituals: Inside China’s Africa-First diplomacy

    •  By Charles Onunaiju

    The tradition of choosing Africa first in China’s diplomatic work in which the foreign minister visits the region at the start of every year, in the past 36 years is neither a hollow ritual nor a safari. Facts have proven over the years that the consistent pattern of the diplomatic outreach which is rooted in the history of China-Africa cooperation has enabled one of the world’s most pragmatic and productive partnerships, in contemporary international relations.

    The tradition did not jump out of the magic box but is rooted in the shared history of anti-colonial struggles and the solidarity built from it. From December 14, 1964 to February 4, 1964, China’s affable Premier Zhou Enlai made the famous visit to 10 African countries –Egypt, then (United Arab Republic), Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana, Mali, Guinea, Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia, spending a total of 55 days in Africa, the longest of any visiting foreign leader to the region in all her post-colonial history.

    Significantly, before his scheduled arrival to Accra, Ghana, an assassination attempt on the then Ghanaian leader, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, nearly marred the visit but the legendary premier insisted on the visit to demonstrate the unbreakable bond of friendship between China and Africa, for which even an unforeseen circumstance could not vitiate.

    Premier Zhou Enlai, went on, in Ghana to announce the historic Eight Principles of Assistance to Arab and African countries which among them is the iconic “self-reliance”, in which it was explicitly stated that “the purpose is to help recipient countries embark on the road to self-reliance and independent development, not to make them dependent on China”. The spirit of the Eight Principles has traversed the historic trajectories of China –Africa cooperation up to now with adaptations and modifications to the changing times. Beijing’s Africa first diplomatic outreach at the start of every year in the past 36 years is a bold affirmation and testament that no matter how China grows in influence, wealth and power or even however, the world changes, China  would remain trustworthy and reliable friend of Africa and true to her essential historic features.

    This important bit of history is necessary to disclaim any notion that contemporary China-Africa cooperation is transactional or opportunistic. While the course of the partnership as evident in the tradition of Chinese foreign minister first visit to Africa at the start of the year drew from history, it is not a mere tribute to historical memory. It is practical and aligns with strategic contributions to the core concerns of Africa including, support to narrow or even close the historical deficit in infrastructure connectivity, that for long hobbled the vision of the region’s integration and Pan-Africa unity.

    The Belt and Road Initiative, a framework for international cooperation has delivered and still delivering on the critical requirements of Africa that not only enables connectivity within Africa but with the rest of the world.

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    The significance of the BRI is best illustrated that Africa is the region of the world with the largest number of partner countries. From Nigeria’s first ever deep seaport; Lekki Deep sea port to Mombasa –Nairobi to standard gauge railway, Ethiopia- Djibouti’s first electrified railway and many others, the state of infrastructure connectivity is nearing the bold vision for African industrial and infrastructure integration outlined in the historic Lagos Plan of Action, decided in 1980 by African leaders meeting under auspicious special session of the organization of Africa Unity (OAU) held in Lagos, with prior consultations with organized labour movement and other popular non-governmental groups, including the intelligentsia and women. The pragmatism and tangible outcomes embedded in the follow-up process of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) which are further reinforced in the Africa first tradition of Chinese Foreign Minister’s visit to the region has helped established a predictable frame work of long term engagement.

    On the 70th anniversary of China’s diplomatic relations with Africa starting with Egypt’s Abdel Nasser’s outreach to the then young People’s Republic of China in 1956; Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania and Lesotho is significant, not only because it conforms to the continuity of a tradition already well known to the world but more importantly for the year under review. In the spirit of the traditional format of consultations and consensus, the Chinese and African leaders declared the 2026 as “China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges”, a deliberate calibration to people-centric engagement because a historic partnership of China-Africa proportion is not only more secure in the intimate bosom of the people, but should better flourish at the people’s conscious ownership of its process.

    At Ethiopia during the visit of Foreign Minister Wang Yi and other high officials including the African Union chairperson, Mr. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, co-chair of FOCAC, Jean-Claude Gakosso who is also the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Congo, Ethiopian President, Taye Atske Salassie, the “China-Africa Year of People-to People Exchange” was launched with clarion calls for the two civilizations to deepen dialogue and play pivotal roles in the global dialogue among civilizations.

    President Xi Jinping in his congratulatory letter on the occasion expounded on the significance of mutual learning among civilizations in adding momentum to China-Africa modernization. He further outlined the direction and principles of people-to-people and cultural cooperation, which demonstrated deep reflections on human history and civilization and provided important guidance for building an all-weather China-Africa community with a sacred future for the era. He added that facts have buttressed that people-to-people exchanges form the most solid foundation of China-Africa friendship; even as mutual learnings stand as solid platform on which the cooperation would continue its upward trend.

    The “iron clad” nature of China-Africa cooperation is not built on a shared historical memory of solidarity in the anti-colonial and anti-imperialist struggles alone but in the vision of building resilient economies and political stability with the social dividends of peace and improved living conditions for their respective peoples. In their respective national construction, China and African countries have outlined critical sphere of engagement; mutual learnings and experience sharing in governance, thereby expanding the value-chain of engagement, in addition to a solid and credible track record of cooperation in critical areas as trade and investment, industrial and production capacity cooperation, infrastructure cooperation which have already endeared a revolutionary landmark with impacts in across Africa.

    Furthermore, the international consensus on “One-China Principle”, an irreducible minimum of China’s international outlook underlining her sovereignty and territorial integrity, has enjoyed its most high profile affirmations in Africa, where the occasional tantrums of the “Taiwan independence” troublemakers and its few foreign collaborators are staunchly rebuked and reprimanded. At Addis Ababa, the AU headquarters, during Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s Visit, the regional body reaffirmed the “One-China Principle”; stressing unequivocally that there is but one China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory and that the government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China and that the AU firmly supports all efforts by the Chinese government to achieve national unification.

    The Belt and Road Initiative despite been the world’s biggest public goods, represent for Africa a major turning point because it objectively aligns with the region’s historic requirement to open the path to sustainable and inclusive development. Throughout its nearly 13-year history, Africa has not only closely associated with it, but many countries in Africa have deliberately tailored their respective policy to engage with the Belt and Road Initiative. And in the current stage of high quality development, its reputation for sustainability and quality delivery on schedule continues align the urgency of closing the infrastructure connectivity gaps in Africa.

     In the world in which the U.S President Donald Trump has boasted that he is not restrained or constrained by international law or rules but by what he called his private morality, China and Africa should step up in more strategic engagement, accumulating more strategic aggregates for both resilience and credible deterrence, while playing constructive roles in building an international governance architecture that is both broad and inclusive, an effective antidote to any bully.

    The visit of Foreign Minister Wang Yi in honour of a 36-year-old tradition, where Africa is the first destination for any Chinese Foreign Minister, is not much a renewal but a vital new historic starting point, when Africa-China cooperation is no longer at a luxury that both sides can conveniently afford, but an imperative and clarion call to duty, because an increasingly desperate world surely need the certainty and sure-footedness in cooperation model that both sides exemplifies.

    •Onunaiju, Director, Centre for China Studies, (CCS) Abuja.

  • China slams Trump’s plan to control Venezuela’s oil as illegal move

    China slams Trump’s plan to control Venezuela’s oil as illegal move

    China on Wednesday sharply criticised U.S. President Donald Trump’s planned intervention in Venezuela’s oil industry.

    The “outrageous use of force against Venezuela” by the United States and the demand that the country should manage its oil resources according to the “America first” principle constitute harassment, violate international law, and harm the rights of the Venezuelan people, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said.

    Venezuela has full sovereignty over its mineral resources and economic activities, Mao continued, stressing that China’s rights and interests in the country must also be protected.

    China is a key ally of Venezuela and the largest buyer of the South American country’s oil.

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    In a post on his Truth Social platform on Tuesday, Trump said Venezuela’s interim government would hand over between 30 million and 50 million barrels of “sanctioned oil” to the U.S.

    The U.S. president said he would control the proceeds to ensure they were used “to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States.”

    The U.S. attacked targets in Venezuela on Saturday, seizing authoritarian leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores over alleged drug offences and removing them from the country.

    After the operation, Trump said that the U.S. would temporarily run Venezuela.

    The U.S. president had previously highlighted the economic potential of the country’s oil industry, stating that major U.S. oil companies would invest in repairing infrastructure and developing production.

    (dpa/NAN)

  • China imposes tax on condoms, contraceptives in fresh push to raise birth rate

    China imposes tax on condoms, contraceptives in fresh push to raise birth rate

    China has imposed a 13 per cent value-added tax on condoms, contraceptive drugs and devices as part of renewed efforts to reverse the country’s declining birth rate.

    The policy, which took effect from January 1, brings to an end more than three decades of tax exemptions on contraceptive products.

    The world’s second-largest economy has recorded a steady population decline, with China’s population shrinking for the third consecutive year since 2024. The trend has raised concerns about the long-term impact on the country’s labour force and economic growth.

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    Following decades of strict population control under the one-child policy, which was enforced from 1980 to 2015, Chinese authorities have shifted focus to encouraging childbirth and supporting young families.

    As part of these measures, the government has introduced wide-ranging incentives, including a 90 billion yuan (about $12.7 billion) childcare subsidy programme. In addition, families are to receive an annual subsidy of 3,600 yuan for each child under the age of three in 2025.

    The Chinese government has also announced that national health insurance schemes will now cover childbirth-related expenses, further easing the financial burden on prospective parents.

  • Nigeria pledges to deepen strategic partnership withChina in 2026

    Nigeria pledges to deepen strategic partnership withChina in 2026

    Nigeria has expressed its readiness to consolidate and deepen its Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with China in 2026.

    The Director-General and Global Liaison of the Nigeria–China Strategic Partnership, Mr. Joseph Tegbe, said the focus would remain on cooperation that directly supports Nigeria’s development priorities. 

    These include economic diversification, infrastructure development, human capital growth, technology transfer and long-term sustainability.

    Speaking on the future of the partnership, Tegbe expressed confidence that collaboration between both countries would continue to strengthen and mature.

    According to him, sustained engagement and shared commitment by Nigeria and China would ensure the delivery of lasting outcomes that advance their common vision of a China–Nigeria community with a shared future.

    He also noted that the federal government has consistently upheld the One-China principle as the cornerstone of its diplomatic relations with the People’s Republic of China.

  • Nigeria, China partner on agric

    Nigeria, China partner on agric

    The Federal Government’s ongoing drive to modernise the agricultural sector has received a major boost, following a series of strategic engagements with leading agribusiness enterprises in Beijing, China.

    The strategic engagements came on the heels of a high-level delegation led by the Governor of Kaduna State, Senator Uba Sani, and the Director-General of the Nigeria–China Strategic Partnership (NCSP), Mr. Joseph Tegbe, to China.

    The delegation toured Beijing Doudian Yisheng Halal Meat Industry Co. Ltd and CP Food Layers and Eggs Ltd, two major players in China’s livestock and poultry ecosystem.

    The visits formed part of ongoing high-level engagements aimed at accelerating the development of Nigeria’s livestock sector and advancing agro-industrial growth in Kaduna State and other parts of the country.

    This is to complement NCSP’s earlier engagements with DQY Ecological Farm, a major subsidiary of the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) Group and one of China’s most advanced agricultural technology platforms.

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    According to officials on the mission, the engagements focused on deepening technical cooperation, finalising project frameworks, and securing long-term investment commitments from Chinese partners.

    The NCSP noted that the mission aligns with the Federal Government’s strategic priorities on food security, agricultural industrialisation, and expanded foreign investment under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

    The Partnership reaffirmed its commitment to supporting collaborative initiatives that drive large-scale agricultural transformation and unlock sustainable economic growth.

    A central component of the collaboration is the establishment of a landmark $200 million National Integrated Poultry Development Project, whose pilot phase will be sited in Kaduna State.

    Designed for eventual replication across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, the project is expected to evolve into one of West Africa’s most technologically advanced poultry enterprises—ultimately reducing the market cost of eggs and other poultry products through large-scale, efficient production.

    Once fully operational, the Kaduna pilot is projected to generate over $450 million annually and create more than 350,000 direct and indirect jobs along the national poultry value chain. Analysts highlight that the initiative will significantly strengthen food production capacity, accelerate agro-industrialisation, boost export competitiveness, and contribute substantially to Nigeria’s economic diversification efforts.

    The delegation expressed deep appreciation to the Government of the People’s Republic of China for its sustained partnership and growing commitment to Nigeria’s agricultural development.

    Chinese institutions engaged during the visit signaled strong interest in expanding investment and technology cooperation with Nigeria.

    The NCSP reiterated that it remains committed to driving high-impact bilateral partnerships that reinforce Nigeria–China relations, accelerate agricultural modernisation, and unlock inclusive economic opportunities for millions of Nigerians.

  • Tinubu’s economic drive: China, Nigeria expand agriculture, skills partnership

    Tinubu’s economic drive: China, Nigeria expand agriculture, skills partnership

    In pursuit of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda aimed at expanding non-oil external revenue, the federal government has opened fresh bilateral talks with China on agriculture and skills development.

    The discussion was held between the chairman of the Senate committee on the Northwest Development Commission and the Senator representing Jigawa North-East Senatorial District, Dr. Babangida Hussaini, and the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to Nigeria, His Excellency Yu Dunhai.

    In a statement made available to The Nation in Dutse, Senator Hussaini described the meeting as “productive and fulfilling,” noting that the talks focused on practical areas of cooperation that would directly benefit Nigeria and Jigawa State, particularly his senatorial district.

    According to him, the new initiative will enhance the export of key agricultural commodities such as sesame seeds and hibiscus flowers, improve market access for farmers and traders, and strengthen commercial ties capable of stimulating local economies.

    “We discussed establishing a strong and sustainable trade linkage between our major markets — particularly Gujungu Market and the Maigatari International Border Market — and markets in China,” Hussaini stated.

    He added that the talks also explored opportunities for Nigerian youths to access training, exposure, and capacity-building programmes in China, especially in technology, skills development, and postgraduate studies.

    “I am confident that these partnerships will open new doors for our young people, enabling them to grow, innovate, and contribute meaningfully to national development,” the senator said.

    Senator Hussaini expressed appreciation to Ambassador Yu Dunhai for his openness and willingness to collaborate, reaffirming his commitment to pursuing strategic partnerships that will bring development and long-term progress to Jigawa North-West, the state, and Nigeria at large.

  • An open China for a shared future

    An open China for a shared future

    • By Amb Yu Dunhai

    Sir: Not long ago, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China was convened in Beijing. During the session, the document Recommendations of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development was deliberated and adopted, charting the course for China’s development over the next five years.

    The plenum called for steadily expanding institutional opening-up, safeguarding the multilateral trading system, promoting broader international economic flows, and advancing reform and development through opening-up, thereby creating broader space for China and the world to share development opportunities.

    In early November, the 8th China International Import Expo (CIIE) was successfully held in Shanghai. As the first major economic and diplomatic event following the Fourth Plenary Session, this year’s CIIE not only demonstrated the vast potential of the Chinese market but also served as a platform for global partners, including Nigeria, to connect and collaborate.

    Nigeria participated in the Expo a Guest Country of Honour. During the event, the Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, Speaker of the House of Representatives, attended and addressed the opening ceremony. Chinese Premier Li Qiang held a productive meeting with the Hon. Abbas and his delegation. Building on these high-level engagements, Nigeria’s presence was further highlighted at its national pavilion.

    Showcasing the country’s economic achievements, investment potential, and high-quality products, the Nigeria Pavilion attracted considerable attention from Chinese buyers and investment institutions. Nigerian businesses used this platform to gain direct access to China’s vast market and enhance their brand visibility through exchanges with international exhibitors. Key Nigerian exports—such as agricultural products, processed foods, and creative industry goods—continued to be well-received by Chinese consumers, injecting new vitality into bilateral economic and trade relations.

    This year, the CIIE upgraded its special exhibition zone for products from the world’s least developed countries, many of which are from Africa. This upgrade enabled enterprises and products from all 53 African countries that have diplomatic ties with China to fully benefit from zero-tariff treatment. More than 80 business associations from over 50 countries and regions participated as groups, underscoring the CIIE’s unique role in supporting global small and medium-sized enterprises. The Hongqiao International Economic Forum, held in tandem with the CIIE, focused for the first time on the themes of “economic resilience” and “sustainable agricultural development” in the Global South, further demonstrating China’s commitment to advancing hand in hand with developing countries.

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    Over the past five years, China’s economy has maintained steady growth amid a complex international environment. By the end of 2025, China’s total economic output is expected to reach around 140 trillion yuan (approximately USD 19.4 trillion), contributing about 30% to global economic growth. China has continued to promote technological innovation and green transformation while further expanding opening up, creating new opportunities for global cooperation.

    Nigeria, as a major African economy with a young population and vast market potential, has seen its relations with China enter a fast track of development under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state. Bilateral trade has grown steadily, surpassing USD 20 billion in the first three quarters of 2025, a year-on-year increase of 32.56%. China has remained one of Nigeria’s top trading partners for many years. The two countries have achieved fruitful cooperation in energy, agriculture, manufacturing, infrastructure, and the digital economy, while also exploring new opportunities in green transformation and emerging industries.

    The year 2026 will mark the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Nigeria. China is ready to take this opportunity to deepen the alignment of development strategies with Nigeria, effectively connecting China’s 15th Five-Year Plan with Nigeria’s “Renewed Hope” Agenda, expand practical cooperation across multiple fields, and support Nigeria’s industrial and agricultural modernization.

    Today, the world is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century. China cannot be separated from the world in achieving development, and the world also needs China for prosperity. No matter how the international landscape evolves, China’s determination to expand high-level opening up will remain unchanged; its resolve to share development opportunities with the world will remain unchanged; and its commitment to promoting open, inclusive, balanced, and win-win economic globalization will remain unchanged.

    China will continue to advance high-level opening up, work together with Nigeria and other African countries to build a closer China-Africa community with a shared future, and jointly create a better future defined by openness, cooperation, and mutual benefit.

    •Amb Yu Dunhai,

    China’s Ambassador to Nigeria.