Alleviating Poverty For Development: China’s Best Practices Inspire Africa

A first-ever think tank forum between the two parties held in Addis Ababa on June 21-22 and participants resolved to deepen partnership in the domain for better results.

Poverty alleviation efforts in Africa that have recorded mitigated results over the years could witness a new launch pad should governments revise their strategies and work towards changing the mindset and mentality of the population vis-à-vis the scourge.  The People’s Republic of China that lifted over 700 million people out of poverty in three decades and plans to completely journey the remaining 70 million still trapped in the deep by 2020 has shared the secrets of her success story with Africa and pledged to stand by the continent in winning the battle.   

A first-ever Africa-China High-level Dialogue and Think Tank Forum on Fighting Against Poverty for Common Prosperity held at the headquarters of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on June 21-22, 2017 under the joint Chairmanship of Chinese Foreign Minister, Wang Yi and the African Union Chair, Moussa Faki Mahamat.  C0-organized by the African Union Leadership Academy and Zhejiang Normal University of China within the framework of the 2015 China-Africa Cooperation Forum in Johannesburg, South Africa, target was to seek ways of realizing Africa’s independent and sustainable development as well as opening up a new era for China-Africa win-win cooperation for common prosperity.

It emerged from the various presentations and discussions that Africa has to imperatively address the issue of its mentality and mindset and to recognize that poverty is not a destiny. That it is something that policymakers with good leadership can address sustainably in the continent. After listening to strategies China adopted to be winning the war against poverty today, experts observed that it would be good for African countries to be consistent in developing infrastructure, improving governance for services such as healthcare, access to water, electricity et al that are vital in dealing with poverty to be basic rather than luxuries. 

According to Emmanuel Nnadozie, Executive Secretary of the African Capacity Building Foundation, “African governments have got to ensure that growth is inclusive, that it is happening at very high levels and that the growth is double-...