The President of the ECOWAS Commission, H.E. Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, is leading the ECOWAS Commission's delegation to the 2024 Summit of the Forum of China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in Beijing. The summit is scheduled from September 2nd to 6th, 2024. Dr. Touray is accompanied by Mr. Sédiko Douka, Commissioner for Infrastructure, Energy and Digitalisation, and Mr. Jerome Boa, Director of External Relations.
The 9th Ministerial Conference of FOCAC took place on September 3rd, where participants reviewed the implementation progress of priority areas outlined in the 2021 FOCAC Action Plan. A draft Beijing Declaration and a new Action Plan were also endorsed during this session.
Ministers from nearly all African countries attended alongside their Chinese counterparts. Several African leaders, including Nigeria's President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who also serves as Chair of ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government, have arrived in Beijing for the summit.
This year's summit focuses on cooperation between China and Africa in governance, industrialization, peace and security, as well as infrastructure development. The event marks a return after a six-year break due to the COVID-19 pandemic and follows three years after the last ministerial conference held in Dakar in November 2021.
FOCAC was established to promote equal consultation and cooperation between Africa and China. Since its inception with the first ministerial conference in October 2000 in Beijing, it has aimed at enhancing understanding and expanding consensus between both regions.
To facilitate ongoing collaboration since 2002, FOCAC implemented a three-level follow-up mechanism involving Senior Officials meetings, African Diplomatic Corps engagements, and activities coordinated by the Secretariat of the Chinese Follow-up Committee.
Over time, several sub-forums have been created under FOCAC's framework to address various aspects such as health cooperation and media collaboration among others.
At this year's summit conclusion, two key documents are anticipated: a Declaration and an Action Plan for advancing high-quality China-Africa cooperation over the next three years.
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