RUC NADS Held “China's African Strategy and Studies” Lecture

From 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on December 3, 2018, invited by the National Academy of Development and Strategy (NADS) of Renmin University of China (RUC), Professor Liu Hongwu, Dean of the African Research Institute, Zhejiang Normal University, Distinguished Professor of Changjiang scholars, Ministry of Education and senior specialist in Zhejiang Province, came to RUC to give a lecture titled China’s African Strategy and Studies.

The lecture was moderated by Mr. Liu Qian, associate research fellow of Institute of Social Transformation and Rule of Law of RUC NADS and Associate Professor of Institute of Anthropology of RUC NADS. Participants of the lecture included Zhao Xudong, Director of Institute of Anthropology of RUC; Liu Qingjian, Professor of School of International Studies of RUC; Gong Haoqun, Deputy Director and Associate Professor of Institute of Global Ethnology and Anthropology of Minzu University of China; Liu Dongxu, Associate Professor of Institute of Global Ethnology and Anthropology of Minzu University of China and other scholars and media reporters from University of International Business and Economics, CCTV, Tianjin University of Technology and Education, etc.

The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation 2018 was successfully held. Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out in his opening speech for FOCAC 2018 that “China and Africa shall work together to build a community of shared future”. With this new mission of the times, what the academia shall focus on now are topics such as the new situation of Africa's political and economic transformation, the new direction of China-Africa cooperation under the significant global transformation, China's African studies and independent innovation of ideas, the FOCAC 2018 and China's global strategic layout. Professor Liu Hongwu discussed the China-Africa relations from a strategic point of view in his lecture, elaborating the characteristics and development potential of African civilizations, Africa’s growth orientation and China's exploration, China's African strategy and policy and the two-way construction of China-Africa shared knowledge system.

Professor Liu Hongwu stated that Africa has abundant cultural landscape and strategic resources, with huge development potential and strong aspirations for development. Driven by the globalization of economy, trade, investment and science and technology, it is of great significance to African countries, China and even the world to understand the value of traditional cultural individuality represented by Africa in modernization and bring it into the pattern of human development through creative transformation.

In his analysis of the strategic relationship between China and Africa, Professor Liu Hongwu believes that Africa is the pivot for China to lever its relations with the West, the place for China to shape its new national identity and the platform for China to build a community of shared future for mankind. For Africa, China offers it an opportunity to break away from its destiny of western dominance and to find a new development path. China could help African countries to enhance their global strategic position and regain confidence in the world. Therefore, China attaches great importance to African strategy and studies so as to better promote and contribute to the development of Africa.

At the end of the lecture, Professor Liu Hongwu recommended that the academic circle shall extract the knowledge form, theoretical system and discourse concept that can interpret and promote the joint development of China and Africa from the two civilizations and their cooperation practices. Focusing on two major topics of “African Development Issue” and “China-Africa Development and Cooperation”, the circle should work hard to promote bi-directed study of “African studies in China” and “Chinese studies in Africa”.

After the lecture, Professor Liu Hongwu exchanged views with the audiences at present. Anthropologist Professor Zhao Xudong proposed that as China's current contributions to Africa's development are mainly in economy, more study on how to further deepen the understanding and cooperation between both sides in social and cultural aspects, and how can Chinese development experience be helpful to Africa who is historically and culturally different from China will be of great value. Scholars also discussed how to strengthen the research academic team in Africa, the proposal to carry out anthropological studies in Africa, the expression of the African integration process in diplomatic teaching materials, and the stereotypes of Africans.