The Department of Commerce of Hunan Province and the Hunan Provincial Department of Finance jointly issued a series of policies and measures for the high-quality construction of the Pioneering Zone for In-depth China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation (trial) on February 14, 2025. The project aims to assist Hunan Province in cultivating and introducing the resources for economic and trade cooperation with Africa based on the pioneering zone, striving to build a service system of China-Africa economic and trade collaboration, and to create a "national team" for local economic and trade partnership with Africa.

There are 11 initiatives in four major areas in the document, including support for the building of a facilitation service system for trade with Africa, the high-quality development of trade and investment with Africa, upgrading the level of financial services, and strengthening the promotion of China-Africa economic and trade exchanges. Specifically, Hunan will:

- Support the construction and operation of inspection and testing laboratories for products exported to China;

- Support the construction and operation of public overseas warehouses in Africa;

- Encourage the expansion of imports from Africa;

- Encourage deepening the production capacity cooperation with Africa;

- Support enterprises to participate in exhibitions in Africa;

- Support the investment attraction and introduction of business entities with Africa;

- Promote new types of barter trade with Africa;

- Set up the China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation Service Fund;

- Increase support for financing and credit insurance;

- Strengthen the influence of the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo; and,

- Support the establishment of the China-Africa economic and trade service system and long-term mechanism for economic and trade exchanges and cooperation with Africa.

The policies and measures focus on improving the supply chain system of the modern industrial chains in China and Africa, and fostering the integration of production, industry, and trade, along with a combination of investment, construction, and operation. The initiatives will enhance the synergy in China-Africa trade and industrial cooperation, striving to build an autonomous and controllable logistics system, thus facilitating trade and investment with Africa. Meanwhile, efforts will be made to build a long-term mechanism for economic and trade exchanges and cooperation with Africa, with relevant departments, cities, prefecture, and industrial parks and zones playing their roles to cultivate industrial ecology and promote the main bodies and elements of cooperation with Africa to gather in the pioneering zone. The Department of Commerce of Hunan Province and the Hunan Provincial Department of Finance will formulate recognition and management methods for key economic and trade projects with Africa. These departments will put forward corresponding implementation rules, quantitative assessment standards, and specific comprehensive scores for each initiative in the document. Projects identified as being in line with the direction of the supporting policies of the pioneering zone will be included in the database of key projects on trade and economic cooperation with Africa and will be given relevant support.

The State Council approved a general plan by the People's Government of Hunan Province and the Ministry of Commerce on building a pioneering zone for in-depth China-Africa economic and trade cooperation in January of 2024. The First Consultative Conference on Building a Pioneering Zone for In-depth China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation was held in Changsha in May of 2024, calling for advancing the implementation of the results of the ministry-provincial consultation and striving to build the pioneering zone into a testing ground and model area for China-Africa economic and trade cooperation.

This article is from the Hunan Provincial Government www.enghunan.gov.cn.

Translator: Yu Jiangjiang

Chinese source: hunan.gov.cn