WINDHOEK, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- China's development assistance to African countries needs to focus more on training and education through scholarships and staff exchange programs, a Namibian official said on Thursday.
"Africa has a dire need for qualified artisans, engineers and so forth. China has made huge gains in this area
and could be of great assistance to Africa by increasing the provision of
training opportunities, as well as sending their excess skilled labor to help
build African infrastructure such as dams, roads and railway lines," said
Bernharadt M. Esau, deputy minister of trade and industry, during an interview
with Xinhua.
He praised China for always providing assistance to
Africa without any conditions, and with due cognizance of the difficulties faced
by African countries in the quest to economically develop themselves. It has
also strongly supported and contributed to the debt cancellations of many
African countries which are now in a position to use the funds for economic
development.
"We are much grateful for these supportive actions of
the Chinese government. To us, China is a natural ally, and partner in the
struggle for economic independence from neo-colonialism. It is a strong
proponent for South-South cooperation and for a more egalitarian world system,"
he said.
In return, Africa has been more than willing and will
continue to ensure that China receive the commodities it requires at competitive
prices to sustain high economic growth rates and provide a better standard of
living for its people, he said.
"We need to build upon our historical experiences,
and translate the political gains into an economic advantage by collaborating to
increase Chinese investments, capital, and technology in Africa to assist us to
unlock the vast mineral resources an agricultural potential," said the official.
"Cooperation should also increase in the area of promoting tourism. Both China
and Africa has more to gain by diverting tourism in each other's direction and
so tapped into this huge global market which annually generate billions of U.S.
dollars."
The official stressed that China has been a "most
reliable ally and friend of Africa and Namibia" since the days of Africa's
colonization. As such the current relations are much shaped by the technical,
financial, diplomatic and development assistance which China rendered to many
African countries including Namibia.
To this effect, China's economic rise and in
particular its contribution to the increase in the global demand for resources
such as aluminum, steel, nickel, copper, oil and gas has immensely contributed
to Africa's importance as a provider of these resources.
Indeed, China's economic competitiveness as an
exporter of manufactured industrial and consumer goods have greatly assisted in
reducing the high prices usually paid by African importers to suppliers of
industrial inputs from the West.
In his opinion, African countries are now profiting
from higher export gains due to China's increased demand for commodities, as
well as from cheaper import prices because of high output of cheaper
manufactured goods.
"We can confidently say that the terms of trade have
shifted towards those countries exporting raw materials and importing
manufactured goods. In fact, it is due to China's global presence that the end
of the Cold War prediction which presumed that Africa would become a forgotten
and marginalized continent, has not been realized and is unlikely to happen," he
said. "In a nutshell, our relationship with China which is mutually beneficial
is very excellent as it has always been."
He admitted that there are some obstacles such as
cultural and language differences between the two sides.
"We are successfully overcoming through dialogue,
appreciation,acceptance and celebration of each other's cultures," he said,
adding that the bilateral relationship has been tried under the most severe
conditions of colonization and did withstand the test of the time successfully
due to the understanding between both African and Chinese leaders.
"In the same manner, we will deal with any perceived
or real threat or obstacle through dialogue based on a rich history of
cooperation, friendship and common interests," the official said.
He said an "excellent case in point" is the issue of
Chinese textile exports which threatens the survival of the textile industry in
Southern Africa, and China's understanding and willingness to sit around the
table with leaders of that region to resolve this issue amicably and in a
mutually beneficial manner."
"We should continue dialogue on important issues of
common concern, expand cooperation to areas not covered yet such as tourism,
sign new bilateral agreements and implement them, within the framework of the
China-Africa Cooperation Forum," he said.
"I see many Africans now learning the Chinese culture
and language, and also Chinese nationals learning African languages and marrying
Africans. This is a good development for our people to embrace and be
internalized at personal and family levels," the official added. Enditem
