New platform aimed at China-Africa economic and trade cooperation launched

A new comprehensive service platform dedicated to China-Africa economic and trade cooperation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area was officially launched in the Nansha district in this Guangdong provincial capital on Tuesday, playing a part in advancing ties between the GBA and the African continent.

Meanwhile, the China-Africa Economic and Trade Greater Bay Area International Business Center officially kicked off its operation when the China-Madagascar (Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area) Economic and Trade Cooperation Center signed an agreement and made its debut as one of the first institutions to locate in the center.

The center is jointly operated by the Nansha district government and the China-Africa Friendship Economic and Trade Development Commission. It aims to build a "one-stop" service hub integrating business office, industrial matching, policy consultation, and cultural exchange, providing enterprises with full-chain services, including legal support, supply chain integration, and market development.

Zhang Yi, chairman of the China-Africa Friendship Economic and Trade Development Commission, said China-Africa cooperation, which has gone beyond traditional trade, has now entered a new stage of industrial synergy and resource integration.

Zhang said GBA, with its comprehensive industrial system, efficient logistics network, and vibrant consumer market, is becoming a strategic fulcrum for deepening China-Africa cooperation.

"We will work closely with Nansha to jointly build the center into a new benchmark for China-Africa economic and trade cooperation in the months to come," said Zhang.

And Jean Louis Robinson Richard, Madagascar's ambassador to China, said he is eager to deepen cooperation between China and Madagascar in agriculture, mining, new energy, and smart port construction.

He reiterated the importance of Chinese hybrid rice technology for Madagascar's food self-sufficiency goals.

Nansha offers ideal conditions for building a full-chain system of "African resources, Guangdong manufacturing, and global sales," said the ambassador.

"I believe it will become 'the world's Nansha' — serving global prosperity," he added.

According to Sun Yong, executive deputy head of Nansha district, it took only four months for the center to be completed, and operation starts from the signing of the agreement, demonstrating Nansha's commitment to deepen reform and open its door wider to the outside world.

Sun said Nansha will take (operation of the center) as an opportunity to build the center into a magnet for China-Africa trade resources and the primary gateway for domestic enterprises seeking to access African markets.

He said his district will regularly organize investment forums, corporate salons, economic and trade fairs, expos and related events to help promote China-Africa ties.

As a core hub port in the southern Chinese region, Nansha Port handled a container throughput of up to 20.5 million TEUs last year, ranking 9th globally.

Its foreign trade route network extensively covers over 310 ports in more than 120 countries and regions.