The 15^th China Lecture wrapped up on June 15, 2023 in Ethiopia with China-Africa Institute (CAI) hosting a lecture focusing on poverty alleviation and stability, China-Africa cooperation in security governance and other topics. After the lecture, delegation of the CAI held talks with officers from African Union (AU) Commission, U.N. Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and academic institutions in Ethiopia.

Chaired by Zhou Yunfan, vice president of CAI, the lecture was jointly organized by CAI and the Institute for Peace & Security Studies, Addis Ababa University (AAU), and attended by nearly 40 researchers, scholars and students. Mercy Fekadu, assistant professor and deputy director of Institute for Peace & Security Studies, AAU said, Africa has long been suffering from peace deficit, and it is an urgent to promote peace in Africa via policy dialogue, this is why the Institute for Peace & Security Studies is established. Whereas China proposed the Global Development Initiative (GDI) and the Global Security Initiative (GSI) based on its development practices. Dr. Mercy Fekadu expected the lecture given by the Chinese scholars could help their African counterparts draw aspirations from Chinese modernization and its experience in promoting global governance.

Professor Wu Guobao is delivering speech

Dr. Deng Yanting is delivering speech

At the lecture, Wu Guobao, professor of Rural Development Institute and the director of Center for Poverty Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) talked about the achievements and experiences of poverty alleviation in China, reducing poverty and maintaining social stability, common prosperity and sustainable peace. Dr. Deng Yanting, deputy director of the Division of Security Studies of CAI talked about the notion of GSI, the significance of Initiative of Peaceful Development in the Horn of Africa, as well as opportunities and challenges of China-Africa security cooperation.

Scholars of CAI, Dr. Mercy Fekadu (third left, front row) and officers from Institute for Peace & Security Studies

African scholars at the lecture noted that China put forward its peaceful development initiative that is development-based, characterized by mutual respect and in way of peaceful talk. On the other hand, western countries adopted their peaceful development model by playing zero sum game, stirring up troubles and being radical. Obviously, the former is more conform to the reality of vast developing countries including those in Africa.

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Scholars of CAI, officers of AU Commission and Mission of the People's Republic of China to the African Union

On June 14, 2023, with the support of the Mission of the People's Republic of China to the AU, delegation of CAI paid a visit to the AU Commission and held talks with Emile Rwagasana, Deputy Chief Of Staff, AU on exchanges and cooperation between AU and CAI. On June 15, 2023, the delegation visited the UNECA, and held talks with Sweta Chaman Saxena, Chief of Staff & Director OiC, Gender, Poverty & Social Policy Division, UNECA, and experts of the division and the Strategic, Planning and Oversights Division (SPORD), in regard of the African Union’s Agenda 2063, poverty alleviation and China-Ethiopia cooperation and other topics. The delegation also visited the Confucius Institute, Addis Ababa University, and communicated with the Chinese Principal Gao Lili and university students on youth communication between China and Ethiopia.

Scholars of CAI, officers of UNECA and Mission of the People's Republic of China to the African Union

The 15^th China Lecture was held from June 5 to June 15, 2023 in South Africa, Tanzania and Ethiopia respectively with scholars giving six lectures in total. Chinese scholars also interacted with parliament members of the above three countries, government officials, young leaders, experts from universities and think tanks as well as reporters and young people in Africa, making exchanges on a wide range of topics such as the Chinese economic growth, China’s experience in poverty alleviation, national governance and the significance of China-Africa cooperation. The exchanges are said to expound the Chinese wisdom, Chinese experience and Chinese solution that are implied by Chinese modernization.