1st Ld-Writethru: China to cooperate with Africa on industrialization, sanitation, security: FM

China will enhance cooperation with African nations on three pressing issues, namely industrialization, sanitation and safeguarding security and peace, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Sunday.

"We will consolidate cooperation with Africa in traditional fields, while focusing on helping Africa deal with the three most pressing issues," he said.

China and Africa have always been in a community of common destiny, Wang said at a press conference on the sidelines of the annual parliamentary session.

"We are willing to work with African brothers and convert traditional Sino-African friendship into fruit of mutual benefit and cooperation, and help African nations turn their development potential into real strength," Wang said.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, in his visit to Africa last year, had raised such initiatives as six major cooperation projects and three major transport networks, which won extensive endorsement from African nations, Wang told reporters.

Last month, China appointed the first head of its permanent mission to the African Union (AU), which Wang said was an example of China's support to African integration.

The Sixth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) will be held in South Africa later this year, he said.

Wang also expressed his respect and gratitude to Chinese epidemic control experts and medical workers helping fight the Ebola epidemic in Africa.

In the face of the Ebola epidemic, China had sent more than 1,000 epidemic control experts and medical workers to Africa and built in a timely fashion treatment centers in the affected areas, he said.

Two days ago, the last Ebola patient in Liberia was discharged from a treatment center which China helped to build, Wang said.

China had also provided four batches of assistance worth a total of 750 million yuan (122 million U.S. dollars) to the affected countries and their neighbors in Africa, Wang added. Endi