Edition #1

For instance, China is the biggest trading partner for Africa since 2009 with a trade volume around 200 billion in 2020 and 250 billion in 2021. China is the 4th biggest investor for Africa with accumulated FDI close to 50 billion with 25% annual growth since 2000. Besides, Chinese companies constructed over 20 ports, 80 mega power plants, 130 public health facilities, 170 schools and 6,000 km roads and railways respectively in Africa.

Section 2: FOCAC and Agriculture

The importance of agriculture cooperation between Africa and China has been acknowledged in the joint statement since the 1st FOCAC meeting in 2000. And from the 2nd FOCAC onwards, agriculture has been a key issue under the “economic development” sections of the FOCAC Ministerial Conference Action Plans with specific supporting policies and measures. Highlights of decisions regarding agricultural cooperation at FOCAC Conferences throughout the two decades are as followed:

FOCAC 1 (2000) – Beijing

• Agreed to explore avenues of trilateral cooperation between China, African countries, and international institutions such as the FAO.

FOCAC 2 (2003) – Addis Ababa

• For the 1st time: China pledged to support Chinese agriculture enterprises to do cooperative projects in Africa with concessional finances.

FOCAC 3 (2006) – Beijing

• For the 1st time: 10 Agricultural Technology Development Centers would be set up in Africa, which were then expanded into 24 over 20 countries until now.
• Send 100 senior experts on agricultural technologies to Africa.
• Beijing Action Plan 2007-2009: Encourage Chinese companies to invest in Africa’s agriculture sector, along with other emphasis on infrastructure, machinery and processing industry in agriculture.

FOCAC 4 (2009) – Sharm el sheik

• For the 1st time: “agriculture development and food security” are the priority for both sides.
• Send 50 agricultural technology teams to Africa
• Help train 2000 agricultural technicians for African countries

FOCAC 5 (2012) – Beijing

• For the 1st time: Encourage Chinese financial institutions to support cooperation between Chinese and African companies in agricultural planting, processing of agricultural products, animal husbandry, fishery and aquaculture.

FOCAC 6 (2015) – Johannesburg

• For the 1st time: modern agriculture is listed among the “10 Cooperation Projects”.
• Establish “10+10” cooperative mechanism among Africa-China agro-science research institutions

FOCAC 7 (2018) – Beijing

• Help Africa achieving general food security by 2030
• Implement 50 agricultural assistance programs
• Send 500 senior agriculture experts to Africa
• Assist in the development of new research thrusts in the crops, including molecular detection and identification of plant diseases, pest risk analysis, seed health testing/certification, and management of quarantine containment facilities for high-risk materials with biosecurity levels
• Set up a China-AU Agriculture Cooperation Commission
• Hold Africa-China Agriculture Cooperation Forum regularly

FOCAC 8（2021）– Dakar

• Extend agricultural cooperation to include the whole industry chain.
• Support Africa in developing modern agriculture by forming a complete system of breeding, planting, processing, storage, and logistics, and developing featured industries of livestock breeding and cash crop
• Enhance food security capabilities of African countries, and improve safety and value-added of African agricultural produce and food.
• Comprehensively advancing climate cooperation.

SECTION 3:FOCAC Commitments and CAADP

FOCAC Action Plans have pledged to support its implementation since FOCAC 5, and all four priority areas of CAADP are covered by FOCAC commitments.

• Priority 1: Extending the Area Under Sustainable Land Management and Reliable Water Control Systems.
• Priority 2: Improving Rural Infrastructure and Trade-Related Capacities for Market Access
• Priority 3: Increasing Food Supply, Reducing Hunger, and Improving Responses to Food Emergency Crises
• Priority 4: Improving Agriculture Research, Technology Dissemination, and Adoption

Conclusion:

Over two decades, the Forum on China Africa Cooperation has become the major platform for multi-dimensional cooperation between the two sides. Gradually, follow-up institutions under the FOCAC have also been established. On China side, although the significance of agriculture has been acknowledged since the 1st forum, but never provided with substantial support like other sectors (manufacturing and infrastructures for example) until the 2009 summit, when the topic started to associate with food security in the forum’s agenda. On Africa side, a lot of improvement has been made, but lack of better-coordinated stands and actions when negotiating with China still imbalance the relation, especially over issues such as agriculture.

Since China became the largest importer of food internationally in 2019 and the 2nd largest importer of African agriculture products in 2021, it is obviously crucial for African stakeholders, such as AGRA, to carefully monitor and read China’s policy in the agriculture sector. The China Agriculture Policy Digest plans to serve this purpose.

Source:

FOCAC official website http://focac.org.cn ;

Gyude Moore and Anna C Baisch, Agriculture Cooperation under FOCAC, Development Reimaged, Feb 2022;

Haifang Liu, The Transformative Development and African South-South Cooperation in Agriculture Sector, Social Science Academic Press China, Dec 2018;

Cheng Cheng, Building A Bridge to Shared Development: Prospective Assessment of the FOACA, RDCY Research Paper No. 42, Renmin University of China Sep 2018.