Abstract

The 5th Forum for China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) will be held in Beijing in July 2012. The Forum, established for the first time in October 2000 in Beijing, constitutes a platform for African and Chinese policymakers to enhance China’s relations with African countries. The years since 2000 have seen growing political, economic and diplomatic interests in China-Africa relations, attracting global attention toward China’s engagement in Africa. This has led to increasing analysis, research and studies which seek to better understand Sino-African partnerships and cooperation. FOCAC has deepened China-Africa’s relations in various fields: politics, economics, investments, trade, south-south cooperation and aid; etc. For Chinese and African officials, FOCAC constitutes a multilateral platform to evaluate the achievements and discuss the perspectives of Sino-African relations. This paper explores the political partnership element of FOCAC and looks into the workings of the institutions.