Chinese premier's visit aims to boost trade ties

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao flies into one of the poorest nations on earth on Sunday - marking the end of a four-nation tour that started with the world's richest. He will will pay a two-day visit to Ethiopia which is reeling from a crippling drought and where four out of every five people live below the poverty line. Wen – on the first ever visit by a Chinese premier since diplomatic relations were established in 1970 - will hold talks with the Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. They are both are expected to open a key two-day summit in Addis Ababa on Monday focusing on further boosting growing ties between China and Africa. Analysts see the event, a follow-up to the 2000 Beijing China-Africa forum, as an opportunity for China to further woo the developing world and in particular Africa. The China-Africa forum - to be attended by at least 10 African leaders and dozens of foreign and trade ministers - aims to strengthen political, economic, trade and social ties. Currently trade between Africa and China is hardly booming and is tiny compared to African trade with the West. Chinese investment in the continent is almost non-existent. In the first half of this year, trade totalled US $12 billion, and although it has increased six fold since 1990, it still remains a mere fraction of China's trade with the US. Chinese officials say the 10-day visit – which took in Canada, Mexico and the US as well as Ethiopia - is a “logical extension” of Beijing's foreign policy. China is keen to build new partnerships with countries which are not entirely happy with Western, and in particular, US dominance of international affairs. In return, many African countries see China as a potential champion of third world issues as it has a permanent seat at the UN Security Council. “It is in our interests to have strong relations with the third world so it is not strange at all that that our premier visits the US, Canada, Mexico and then Ethiopia," a senior Chinese official told IRIN. “This is a forum to encourage dialogue and have a platform on globalisation – to improve China and African countries’ position in a globalised market,” he added. He declined to comment on whether the unresolved border stalemate with neighbouring Eritrea would form part of talks. “These two governments know each other well," he said. "This should be left to the two sides to be resolved by themselves with the assistance of the international community.” Chinese entrepreneurs are also hoping to take advantage of the state visit. Some 40 businessmen from Chinese state-owned enterprises and more than 60 private businessmen will attend a simultaneous four-day trade fair which starts on Saturday. UN Under Secretary General Kingsley Amoako, who heads the Economic Commission for Africa based in Addis Ababa, said China had shown a strong commitment to Africa. “In our view at ECA, Africa has much to gain by the development of a deeper, longer-term and stable partnership with China,” he said at a preparatory forum meeting. Crucial to the partnership, he said, would be technology transfer to “galvanise” Africa’s fledgling industries. Haile Kiros, Ethiopia's special envoy to the forum, said the government was “very proud” to receive Wen as part of his global four-nation tour. “This is about south south cooperation,” he said. “Trade levels are low but we are only recently working together, and it is growing very fast. We hope to address debt reduction, look at long-term loans and technological exchange between Africa and China.”