China adds Senegal to its African deals

China’s President Xi Jinping inked a clutch of trade accords Saturday on the first visit by a Chinese leader to Senegal in almost a decade.

Senegalese President Macky Sall welcomed his counterpart to Dakar for afternoon talks before Xi continued a tour of the region yesterday, heading to Rwanda, then South Africa on Tuesday ahead of a Brics summit of developing nations starting on Wednesday.

Although details of the accords signed were not immediately forthcoming, Sall said both leaders held talks on “bilateral cooperation, Sino-African relations and international current affairs”, hailing China as one of the great economies of the modern era.

Xi said he had great faith in the future of Beijing’s co-operation with its African partners as it becomes a primary investor on the continent.

A report last year by Ernst and Young named China the single largest contributor of foreign directive investment with 293 projects embarked upon since 2005 for an outlay of $66.4billion (R891.4-billion).

One part of Xi’s business on Saturday involved the formal handover to his host of the keys to a Chinese-built wrestling venue, the sport being hugely popular in the west African nation.

China is already Senegal’s second-biggest trading partner behind France, with bilateral trade surpassing $2-billion (R27-billion) in 2016.

The country’s main exports to China are nuts, as well as the metals, zirconium and titanium.

Chinese imports are steadily gaining ground, construction materials leading the way as Chinese companies increasingly work on state projects.

293 projects embarked upon since 2005 for an outlay of $66.4-billion