By George Cleophace
Friendship between China and Africa started slowly after a general meeting between Africa and Asia, the conference of Bun dung in 1955. Egypt was the first African country to have diplomatic relations with China in 1956, and later at the beginning of 1960 the ten African countries followed. At the end of the 1970s a total of 44 countries out of 50 that were free also joined in diplomatic relations with China. China also helped greatly independence of some African countries for various social aid. For two decades from the mid -1950s to mid -1970s China provided more than 2.5 billion dollars in more than 36 countries of Africa as aid. Moreover China sent more than ten thousand professional of different professions, including doctors and engineers to support the development of African countries by supporting infrastructure and the most present project Tanzania- Zambia Rail, which was funded and built by the Chinese. Not only do these projects helped strengthen China's relations with African countries but also because China started very early to offer assistance and to cooperate with those countries. The successes of China’s policy in Africa at that time were due to People’s Republic of China (PRC) when convince former republic Taiwan as a member of the United Nations in 1971 with support from the African country. From 1978 -1990 China made major economic changes; in 1978 they set strategies for the development of the local economy which allows them to open up to the world of the West.
In the new decade, we have seen cooperation between China and Africa grows more in all aspects. Trade between China and Africa grew the most from 10.5 billion dollars in 2000 to 29.4 billion dollars in 2004, nearly 40 billion dollars in 2005 to over 50 billion dollars in 2006. In 2007 China was second behind the United States to be a good ally and commercially successful African countries.
The advent of this new hope and light for African countries is thanks to China. Since 1956, the Nation of China has been close to the problems of Africans, carrying the burdens of our poor people of Africa to ensure we live a better life by giving us all the support and services of the foundation. It is very difficult for anyone to give a portion of its food reserves, which is hardly enough to satisfy his family and gave to his neighbor. People often produces in excess for others, but China with millions of hungry people and a shortage of food and other basic, yet pulled sacrifice small the small reserved portion for his people and give to African countries. Years of 50’s and 60’s, the majority of Chinese were great poor; the nation did not have sufficient economic resources to provide its citizens with all the requirements. But they were people with love and compassion for the poor as they are, not a single person who stood by complain to his government to why it helping African nations. All were united and support their government to continue with its plans to help African countries.
Africans were mentally slaves due to free bread from rich countries that lead Africans to forget that they have a great potential to overcome poverty. By the power and mercy of God, who gives us great riches we have, he would bring us true love and unselfish ambition to enrich the property of others. This love we have seen and we continue to see with our eyes, we have witnessed for his actions beyond pure hearts of the Chinese.
The Chinese have come to give us great support and academic thought and knowledge so that we can free ourselves from the mouth of a crocodile with a passion and ambition of our resources. Fruit of the arrival of China seems clear to everyone, until now, out of 10 developing countries for economic momentum, five of them are African countries and are those that China has set its hands. This is a sign for Africans to see China becoming a true savior. Africans with all our power needs China as our economic savior due to their good policy to send a wide variety of their experts to come teach us and throw their professionalism, their skill and their technology. So we need to support and cooperate with it so we can leave in the abyss of mental slavery and poverty which torcher us for many years.
Some of the leaders of European countries have come to force us to accept homosexuality and threatened to withdraw aid if we do not obey the filth of their minds. Remember that China is a victim of exploitation as we, they have pain from domination by force and abused like us, they were bound and confined ways of doing business including restricted for a long time to enter the World Trade Organization (WTO). What brought them there is dedication, confidence, self-esteem and self-love as the Chinese were created by God and given the intelligence, ability, strength and human resources to use it to practice to benefit both the Chinese and the people of other countries.
We Africans need to welcome and see China as a savior and our long true friend who is not coming across Africa to stunt our senses by give us bread and flour peck but as the country which is coming to give us knowledge, skills and disciplines to enable in combating our poverty. What the Chinese are doing to African countries is like a person who prepares his field and put a fertilizer over time, sowed the seeds on the whole farm and irrigate. Of course the field which was organized very well will bear much fruit and many grains. So that is what China is doing in African countries , they grow and put manure in mental, in thought and in our minds which were dried and withered away for lack of fresh manure and irrigation water. Africans now have wakeup from sleep, the mind and the thoughts of dependence have started to leave, our leaders see the light before them and have decisions which give hope for the development of their country.
I know many people do not know how much China has invested in these fields, but in the front I will explain in detail so that everyone can see and recognize their importance. It would be a dream to move forward economically if we don’t learn from them and welcome them with the hearts of love and happiness. In addition, China is not coming to Africa under the pretext of aid as western nations are doing, but it comes as a merchant where by everyone can benefit. Even billions of dollars has provided for African countries, it is not just aid but investment is something that is more beautiful in thought and mind expanding many Africans.
China is a friend of every person in the world and this is the recognition, when the country of Zimbabwe is reserved for economic sanctions by western countries, the people of Zimbabwe were injured, they were troubled, they became ill, some of the children died of malnutrition and lack of money for treatment. Infrastructure of the country died, the children were missing school for lack of fees and lack of teacher’s salaries. Many families lack a key requirement to the base, the young women were unemployed. But the country of China and its people looked at that, they know how hungry they were, they decided to volunteer to help the people of Zimbabwe when they should continue to suffer in hunger and continued to do so until today. The thing to ask is that if China did not come alone to help and decided to show love to the people of Zimbabwe who could help? I know that African countries wanted to help Zimbabwe, but the pressure of Western powers incited some African leaders sitting still, and this is because of dependent on help that's why we let others die while witnessing with our own eyes.
Love that leadership in China show and its people to Zimbabwe are amazing and are so great that even the peacekeepers of the world and the preacher of human rights cannot express it. Maybe it possible for President Mugabe was wrong to evict whites in his country and perhaps deserving punishment, but who has the right and ability to punish? And did he do that for whom if not for the Zimbabweans? And as true leaders of Western countries are concerned the rights of people in the world and have a true love from within their hearts, why economic sanction African countries? Especially when ordinary citizens, especially those with low incomes will suffer?
China is as a true friend, has provided aid for reliable and free from restrictions in the continent of Africa to strengthen and increase infrastructure and investment. Africa has witnessed an increase in the rapid growth of economic in the previous decade even in those countries entirely without resources. In addition to other definitions we can say that the Chinese are not coming to Africa to rob our property as claimed by western instruments, but they come to us so that we can grow. It is our responsibility we Africans reflect and decide who is a true friend we can accompany. China projects helped to build infrastructure in the country of Ethiopia with no resources at all, but the infrastructure has been growing rapidly and has been in the hearts and minds of Ethiopians majority eliminate the negative attitude they had on China.The Chinese have been helped Kenya build its infrastructure even before the country does discovered oil. What if the Chinese really follow our oil resources, why they go into countries without oil, gas and mining unjustified? China's relationship with African countries is not to search for oil and minerals, as many have said it is the commercial and diplomatic relationships that benefited both.
There is a big difference between development aid provided by China and those from Western nations. Firstly of all, the assistance provided by China is not in difficult Terms and neither is located in style and political outlook compared to the relief that comes from the West. Often financing offered by these countries goes back in their pockets due to excessive consumption and to pay salaries of their professionals who come to manage the projects. Often you will find all The Chinese live together, in the slums again on their premises where they work, something that is quite different for white professionals. They are arranged in castles that lie in the areas of people with money which cost not less than USD $ 2000 - $ 5000 per month while their counterparts in the Chinese live in slums were they built for their low cost and lived there until the project is finished. Professionals (Expatriate) of the West eat their lunch and sleep in large Motel 5 stars while those of Chinese cooks their food together and buys all food products in small markets in the street. Besides, white professionals pay the high cost of school fees for their children in International schools while their counterparts in the Chinese send their children to regular schools. Turning the issue of transportation, western professionals are lifted by exceptional/luxury and high prices vehicles in running their daily activities and use these vehicles to many different ways by visit tourist places to rest and the beaches on the weekends. But in the case of the Chinese, they use the same vehicle in their daily activities and often do not prefer luxury and attention to the whole issue of the use. These differences are the ones makes projects funded by China to be the most efficient.
The pace of China’s advancement has been a threat to many westerns countries and America. These countries are trying to slow China’s economic advancement in many ways and trying to convince African countries from not doing business with China.
China is the saviour of African countries. China is a true friend of Africa and the world as whole. African countries should use and partner full with it now since it has volunteered itself to assist poor countries to come out of the poverty they have been in since their independent.
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