Your Excellency Mr. Nolana Ta Ama, Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, Ambassador of the Republic of Togo,

Diplomatic Envoys,

Dear Friends,

Good afternoon! In the run-up to the Fourth FOCAC Ministerial Conference, I wish to warmly welcome all the friends, on behalf of the foreign ministry, to this Public day with the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) as the theme. Among the public representatives present here today, some spent years servicing African people with their medical expertise, some sweated for the construction of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway in their youth, some create opportunities and wealth for our two peoples by growing business ties, and others are families and friends of Chinese diplomats working on China-Africa relations. All of you have worked hard, in your own ways, to support the growth of China-Africa relations and friendship. We also have with us today African diplomatic envoys, students and friends from the press. You play an irreplaceable role in promoting China-Africa mutual understanding. Here, I wish to say a big thank you to all the friends here for your dedication to China-Africa cooperation and friendship.

Both China and Africa are cradles of human civilizations. Our friendship and exchanges can be traced back to the 2nd Century AD. It is worth noting that in the Ming Dynasty, Chinese navigator Zheng He led a fleet to the Western Seas on seven voyages, and, for four times, he reached the east coast of Africa, which are now Somalia and Kenya. Many of his stories are still told today. In the mid 20th Century, after the People's Republic of China was founded and most African countries gained independence, China and African countries established diplomatic relations, opening a new chapter in the annals of our friendship. In the past fifty years and more, China-Africa traditional friendship and practical cooperation have withstood the test of time and changes in the international arena and emerged even stronger.

At the dawn of the 21st Century, China and friendly African countries jointly launched FOCAC in 2000 to seek development and meet challenges together. Over the past nine years, China and Africa have given top priority to and put much time and energy into FOCAC. With full-fledged mechanisms, FOCAC is playing a bigger role with increasingly greater influence.

Under the flag of FOCAC, China-Africa friendship has flourished. At the First Ministerial Conference in 2000, we committed ourselves to a new China-Africa partnership featuring long-term stability, equality and mutual benefit. At the Second Ministerial Conference in 2003, we set out to boost comprehensive cooperation under this new partnership. At the Beijing Summit in 2006, President Hu Jintao announced, on behalf of the Chinese government, eight measures that have been well received by African countries. Chinese and African leaders agreed at the summit to build a new type of China-Africa strategic partnership. FOCAC has acted as a spearhead in the sound and fast growth of China-Africa friendly relations and cooperation.

FOCAC is an important platform for China-Africa collective dialogue. Under it, there are mechanisms including ministerial conference, political dialogue at the foreign ministers' level, senior officials' meeting and consultations between the Secretariat of the Chinese Follow-up Committee of FOCAC and the African diplomatic corps in China. The ministerial conference takes place every three years in China and Africa alternately. FOCAC has brought China and Africa together for in-depth exchange of views on our relations and international and regional issues of common interest, and for better coordination and stronger mutual support.

FOCAC is an effective mechanism for China-Africa practical cooperation. Every ministerial conference has adopted feasible plans to guide cooperation across the board in the next three years. FOCAC has become an international brand of China-Africa friendship and cooperation, drawing worldwide interest. It showcases the strengthened cooperation among developing countries and encourages the international community to pay more attention to and increase input in Africa.

In a week's time, the Fourth FOCAC Ministerial Conference will take place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, together with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and some other African leaders, will attend and speak at the opening ceremony. He will announce the Chinese government's new measures for cooperation with Africa. I believe this conference will further promote the growth of China-Africa relations in the new era and become another milestone in the history of China-Africa friendship.

Dear Friends,

The Chinese people are bosom friends and brothers of the African people. We cherish our traditional friendship with the African people, and take African people as our reliable and trustworthy all-weather friends. Looking back, we are proud of our friendship. Looking ahead, we need more people, young Chinese and Africans in particular, to deepen and strengthen China-Africa friendship. We have every reason to be confident that our two peoples will work together to bring our cooperation to a higher plane and make our friendship even more fruitful!