China actively helps Africa ease debt repayment pressure: spokesperson

BEIJING -- China has never been a major creditor in Africa and has always actively helped Africa ease its debt repayment pressure through bilateral and multilateral channels, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said here Tuesday.

Spokesperson Mao Ning made the remarks at a regular press conference in response to a related question.

Mao said that according to the data of the World Bank, multilateral and private creditors account for 80 percent of Africa's sovereign foreign debt, while bilateral debt accounts for only a minority.

Even so, China has always actively helped Africa ease its debt repayment pressure through bilateral and multilateral channels. In fact, China is the biggest contributor to the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative, she said.

In the action plan adopted at the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), China also put forward specific debt relief measures, Mao added.

Mao highlighted several characteristics of China's cooperation with Africa summarized by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi when he met with reporters after the summit.

First, it does not interfere in Africa's internal affairs and sincerely provides assistance; second, it closely follows the needs of Africa's development and focuses on enhancing Africa's independent development capabilities; third, it does not engage in geopolitical games, opposes creating camp opposition in Africa, and opposes using Africa for personal gain.

In fact, since its founding 24 years ago, the FOCAC has played an important role in promoting Africa's development and improving livelihoods of people in Africa, Mao said.

China has helped Africa build and upgrade nearly 100,000 kilometers of roads, over 10,000 kilometers of railways, nearly 1,000 bridges and nearly 100 ports. Chinese enterprises have created more than 1.1 million jobs in Africa over the past three years alone.

"All of this will help Africa break through the bottleneck of development and fundamentally solve the debt problem," she said.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and other African leaders said during the summit that China's investment in Africa represents mutually beneficial cooperation and will not push Africa into a "debt trap," she added.

As Foreign Minister Wang Yi has emphasized, international cooperation with Africa should be just, equal and pragmatic, Mao said.

"We call on the international community, especially developed countries and international financial institutions, to shoulder their responsibilities and help African countries alleviate their debt burden and achieve sustainable development," she added.