By Yu Dunhai
On October 13, 2026, Chinese President Xi Jinping put forth a four-point proposition on advancing China-Africa mining cooperation throughout his assembly with President Duma Gideon Boko of Botswana, who was on a state go to to China. Grounded in the profound transformation of the world important minerals panorama and Africa’s pressing want for impartial improvement, and anchored in the broader context of conventional China-Africa friendship, the proposition charts the course for China-Africa mining cooperation in the new period.
As the Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, I’m keenly conscious of the strategic imaginative and prescient, forward-looking perspective, and sensible relevance of those 4 factors. They current a concrete embodiment of the idea of a China-Africa neighborhood with a shared future, and supply robust assist for Nigeria and different African international locations in remodeling their useful resource endowment into improvement dividends. Drawing on the realities of China-Nigeria mining cooperation, I would love to share with Nigerian pals a deeper understanding of the wealthy substance of this four-point proposition.
First, we should adhere to the precept that African assets belong to Africa. This is the elementary premise of mining cooperation with African nations. Africa has lengthy been locked at the decrease finish of world industrial and worth chains by an inequitable worldwide division of labour–a historic injustice that have to be corrected. Resource sovereignty is an integral part of nationwide sovereignty, and the capacity to management one’s personal useful resource future is the cornerstone of sustainable improvement for African international locations. China totally understands and respects Africa’s reputable aspirations. We have all the time revered the improvement paths independently chosen by African international locations and stand prepared to share our expertise to assist them formulate mining improvement plans suited to their nationwide situations. China helps Nigeria and different African international locations in independently charting their mining improvement paths, making certain that decision-making energy and the advantages of useful resource improvement stay firmly in their very own palms.
Second, we should uphold the precept of pursuing the better good and shared pursuits, and in search of mutual profit and win-win outcomes. This is the core philosophy of China-Africa mining cooperation. In conducting mining cooperation, China and Africa should uphold a right view of righteousness and profit. China by no means pursues unilateral maximization of advantages in its cooperation with Africa, and all the time adheres to win-win cooperation and customary improvement. In Nigeria, Chinese enterprises concerned in power and mining sector not solely convey capital and expertise, but in addition adhere to localized operations, and fix significance to abilities coaching and neighborhood contributions. The Chinese Embassy will proceed to information Chinese enterprises in Nigeria to improve their operational capabilities, switch inexperienced applied sciences, strengthen public welfare help, drive native employment and expertise coaching, and promote South-South cooperation in the mining sector.
Third, we should pursue high-quality improvement. This is the course of progress for China-Africa mining cooperation. Promoting native processing, extending industrial chains and rising worth addition are the key pathways for Africa to convert useful resource benefits into improvement power. China has all the time been a doer in supporting Africa’s improvement and can proceed to drive the transformation of China-Africa mining cooperation in direction of greater industrial worth addition. We will deepen the alignment between China’s fifteenth Five-Year Plan and Nigeria’s “Renewed Hope” Agenda, push tasks additional into deep processing and high-value-added segments, and assist Nigeria construct a extra full industrial system. In this fashion, assets can really grow to be a driver of modernisation relatively than a supply of so-called “resource curse.”
Fourth, we should preserve a truthful and open cooperation setting. This is a vital safeguard for mining cooperation with Africa. Africa’s assets ought to by no means be changed into instruments of geopolitical rivalry. Any try to politicize or instrumentalize African useful resource points in addition to to create confrontation and division will critically harm the elementary pursuits of the African individuals. China constantly advocates open cooperation and truthful competitors. We welcome all events that genuinely want to assist Africa’s improvement and stand prepared to work with African companions to preserve a secure and predictable market setting for mining cooperation, thereby creating extra beneficial situations for enterprise funding and operations. China is prepared to be a part of palms with Nigeria in rejecting any try to deal with mineral assets as bargaining chip in geopolitical video games, making certain that useful resource improvement all the time serves improvement and advantages the individuals.
I would love to emphasise in explicit that the Chinese authorities requires all Chinese enterprises and residents in Nigeria to strictly abide by Nigerian legal guidelines and laws and to function in a lawful and compliant method. We preserve a zero-tolerance coverage towards unlawful mining and different prison actions. China helps Nigeria in taking robust measures to strengthen mining governance. The info present that the overwhelming majority of Chinese mining enterprises in Nigeria function in accordance with the regulation, actively fulfil their social tasks and defend the setting. Isolated and inaccurate allegations that exaggerate particular person instances or distort the info are neither truthful nor conducive to the total China-Nigeria friendship and cooperation. We stand prepared to work with the Nigerian facet to additional regulate market order, collectively fight unlawful mining, and foster a wholesome and clear enterprise setting.
China and Africa share a frequent future and a vivid outlook. Mechanism platforms similar to the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation proceed to present stable assist, whereas the dividends of China’s zero-tariff coverage for all diplomatic companions in Africa proceed to unfold, creating beneficial situations for deeper China-Africa cooperation. I’m satisfied that so long as each side uphold mutual respect and mutual profit, we are able to flip Africa’s useful resource endowment into tangible improvement outcomes, ship better advantages to the Chinese and African peoples, and make better contributions to constructing a China-Africa neighborhood with a shared future.
China stands prepared to work hand in hand with Nigeria and different African international locations to totally implement President Xi Jinping’s four-point proposal on China-Africa mining cooperation, write a new chapter of high-quality improvement in China-Africa mining cooperation, be sure that Africa’s assets really serve the improvement of the African individuals, and make China-Africa mining cooperation a mannequin of South-South cooperation and an vital drive in advancing Africa’s modernisation.
*H.E. Yu Dunhai is Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria
