In a historic moment for the African continent, Nigeria emerged as a strong voice for fair mineral trade practices and ethical artificial intelligence regulations during the groundbreaking G20 Summit held in South Africa from November 22 to 23, 2025.
This marked the first time the prestigious G20 gathering has taken place on African soil, with the Johannesburg Nasrec Expo Centre serving as the powerful platform where African nations collectively advanced their independent development aspirations within the global agenda.
A Watershed Moment for African Representation
The summit represented a significant victory for multilateral cooperation and particularly for the Global South, with African perspectives resonating strongly throughout the discussions. The integration of African development priorities into the global conversation signaled a new era of international engagement with the continent.
During the landmark event, China and South Africa jointly introduced the Initiative on Cooperation Supporting Modernisation in Africa, building upon a decade of China-Africa partnership that began with President Xi Jinping's announcement of the Ten Cooperation Plans on December 4, 2015.
This new initiative demonstrates the evolving commitment between China and African nations to work hand-in-hand toward continental revitalization, drawing an ambitious blueprint for a shared future.
Building on a Decade of Cooperation
Over the past ten years, China has substantially honored its commitments to African development, providing hundreds of billions of RMB in assistance and implementing numerous major projects that have created millions of jobs across the continent.
The cooperation has evolved through various phases - from the initial Ten Cooperation Plans to the Eight Major Actions, and now to the Ten Partnership Actions in the new era. This continuous refinement of cooperation mechanisms has steadily expanded the domains of collaboration between China and African nations.
African infrastructure has seen remarkable improvements with China's support, including significant upgrades to railways, highways, and ports. Industrialization has progressed steadily while agricultural technology has continuously advanced, demonstrating tangible results from the partnership.
The Six Principles and Directions for Modernization
The newly launched Initiative establishes a comprehensive framework guided by six fundamental principles: justice and equitability, openness and win-win outcomes, putting people first, diversity and inclusiveness, sustainable development, and peace and security foundation.
In practical terms, the cooperation focuses on six key modernization directions:
First, achieving just and equitable modernization by supporting African countries in exploring development paths suited to their national conditions and promoting international financial system reform.
Second, realizing open and win-win modernization through increased mineral resource value addition, deeper industrial chain cooperation, and boosted infrastructure investment.
Third, ensuring people-centered modernization with focus on food security, health, poverty reduction, and regional value chain development.
Fourth, promoting diverse and inclusive modernization through strengthened cultural exchanges and cooperation in education, youth development, and women's empowerment.
Fifth, advancing eco-friendly modernization by supporting Africa's green transformation and clean energy cooperation.
Sixth, establishing peace and security underpinned modernization through Global Security Initiative cooperation and support for African collective security mechanisms.
Nigeria's Pivotal Role in Africa's Modernization
As Africa's most populous nation and one of its largest economies, Nigeria stands as a crucial force in the continent's modernization journey and represents a key partner in China-Africa cooperation.
The collaborative efforts between China and Nigeria are expected to provide substantial momentum for implementing the Initiative, potentially creating a model for China-Africa cooperation that other nations can emulate.
The partnership envisions deepened cooperation across multiple sectors including infrastructure connectivity, agricultural and food security, industrial chains and digital economy, livelihood improvement and capacity building, green development, and ecological conservation.
The Initiative represents an innovative fusion of African philosophical traditions, including the Ubuntu spirit and pan-Africanism, with China's vision of a shared future for humanity and its Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.
This integration of African and Chinese wisdom into international consensus provides fresh opportunities for Africa's modernization efforts while serving as practical implementation of building a China-Africa community with shared destiny.
Looking forward, the continued adherence to principles of sincerity, tangible results, affinity, good faith, and mutual benefit between China and Africa promises to transform the Initiative's blueprint into reality, yielding fruitful outcomes for China-Africa cooperation and injecting renewed momentum into global development efforts.
