China's President Xi Jinping inked a clutch of trade accords Saturday on the first visit by a Chinese leader to Senegal in almost a decade.

Senegalese President Macky Sall welcomed his counterpart to Dakar for afternoon talks before Xi continues a tour of the region Sunday, heading to Rwanda, then South Africa on Tuesday ahead of a BRICs summit of developing nations starting Wednesday.

Although details of the accords signed were not immediately forthcoming, Sall told reporters both leaders held talks on "bilateral cooperation, Sino-African relations and international current affairs", hailing China as "one of the great economies of the modern era."

He said China's progress along the development path was a "message of hope" showing that "under-development is not fatal and the battle for progress is above all won by (having) a combative spirit."

Xi responded in kind, telling Sall: "Every time I come to Africa I can measure the great dynamism of this continent."

He added he had great faith in the future of Beijing's cooperation with its African partners as it becomes a primary investor on the continent.

A report last year by Ernst and Young named China the single largest contributor of foreign directive investment with 293 projects embarked upon since 2005 for an outlay of $66.4 billion.

One piece of Xi's business Saturday involved the formal handover to his host of the keys to a Chinese-built wrestling venue, the sport being hugely popular in the west African nation.

China is already Senegal's second-biggest trading partner behind France, with bilateral trade surpassing $2 billion in 2016, according to official data.

The country's main exports to China are nuts as well as the metals, zirconium and titanium.

Chinese imports are steadily gaining ground meanwhile, rising from 227 billion CFA francs (some 350 million euros/$410 million) in 2013 to 367 billion last year, construction materials leading the way as Chinese companies increasingly work on state projects.

Chinese firms have built a major slice of recent Senegalese infrastructure including sports stadia in Dakar, roads, a theatre, a national wrestling arena and a museum of black civilisation.

Since diplomatic relations were restored in 2005 Chinese investments in Senegal have surpassed 1.8 billion euros.

Related Links
Africa News - Resources, Health, Food

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

Silicon Valley eyes Africa as new tech frontier
Lagos (AFP) July 15, 2018
With its colourful hammocks and table tennis table, a new tech hub in the Lagos metropolis wouldn't look out of place among the start-ups on the other side of the world in Silicon Valley. But the NG_Hub office is in the suburb of Yaba - the heart of Nigeria's burgeoning tech scene that is attracting interest from global giants keen to tap into an emerging market of young, connected Africans. In May, both Google and Facebook launched initiatives nearby. This week, Nigeria's Vice-President Ye ... read more