China – Africa Cooperation Enjoys Broad Prospects——Interview with Amb. Rahamtalla M.Osman, AU Permanent Representative to China中非合作前景广阔——专访非盟驻中国代表拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼大使

 
China Investment: As we all know, the African Union has established for twenty years till this year. With 55 member states, now it is one of the largest organizations in developing countries. So, first of all, we would like to ask you to briefly review and summarize the original intention of its establishment, the main work that the AU has done in these years and the progress achieved.

Rahamtalla M.Osman: This year, the African Union celebrates its 20th anniversary. The Durban Summit (2002) launched the AU and convened its first Assembly of Heads of State and Government. Three summits were held in the lead-up to the official launch of the AU, i.e.:

· On 9 September 1999, the then Organization of African Unity, OAU, signed the Sirte Declaration, establishing the Union. The Declaration called for the creation of an organization that would accelerate integration on the continent and enable Africa to play a greater role in the global economy while addressing social, economic and political challenges with African solutions. 9th September is therefore celebrated as African Union Day.

· The Lomé Summit (2000) adopted the African Union’s Constitutive Act

· The Lusaka Summit (2001) drew the roadmap for implementation of the AU.

The decision to re-launch Africa’s Pan-African organization was the outcome of a consensus by African leaders that in order to realize Africa’s potential, there was a need to refocus attention from the fight for decolonization and apartheid, which had been the focus of the OAU, towards increased cooperation and integration of African states to drive Africa’s growth and economic development.

China Investment: What is the most urgent work for the AU for the time being?What are the challenges and opportunities it is facing?

Rahamtalla M.Osman: The African Union has a strategy named AU Agenda 2063. This Agenda encompasses all the aspirations of building the Africa we want, as envisaged by the forefathers who established the Organization of African Unity immediately after the independence from the colonial powers. Their vision stems from the Pan-African movement which was declared by a number of African intellectuals in the 19th century. They aspired to have a united African continent serving the welfare of its people.

The challenges facing the attainment of these aspirations are multifaceted. Some of them was anchored in the legacy of the economic policies of the colonial era, which characterized the economies of the majority of African by depending on export of raw material which resulted in limited export returns due to fluctuations of the international markets. To overcome these chronic impediments, the African Union and before it the Organization of Unity adopted many plans and strategies which culminated in the Agenda 2063.

China Investment: Looking forward to the future, what do you think the AU should focus on? In what areas do you hope the AU can achieve greater achievements?

Rahamtalla M.Osman: Due to the huge challenges as indicated earlier, the AU is bound to embark on dealing with all these challenges in tandem because the development issues were interwoven and has to be tackled simultaneously. Having said that I can single out infrastructure as the most serious challenge which needs a special focus. The importance of infrastructure was in the fact that it embodies all components needed to achieve a comprehensive development i.e. energy, railways, roads, airports, ports, ICT etc. in this regard the major obstacle is the huge finance needed to construct the ambitious projects as stipulated in the Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA) which was adopted by the AU head of states and governments. It is estimated that to implement the infrastructure sector in Africa an annual investment of approximately 100 billion US dollars is needed.

This huge financing requirement is not easily attainable and if available it has its own inherent ramifications namely the debt burden which is a serious issue facing the majority of African countries due to the fragile structure of their economies. The detrimental effects of the debt crisis is widely understood and for a long time many initiatives and debt relief strategies were proposed but not fully implemented which led to deepening the crisis. It also compelled African debtor countries to devote huge sums of their export earnings to service their external debt. This adding another challenge to the already exacerbating situation of the African economies.

China Investment: Over the past two decades, China has always maintained close relations with the AU and carried out many cooperation. In what areas do you think the two sides have done greatly? What are your expectations for the future cooperation between the two sides?

Rahamtalla M.Osman: The most remarkable achievements of China-Africa cooperation over the last two decades in my view is in the field of infrastructure, with all its components roads, airports, ports, railroads and IT projects. Africa still needs more investments and financing as this sector despite its importance is lagging behind. The most promising and encouraging is the announcement of H.E.Xi Jinping during the last FOCAC Conference in Dakar, that China will offer finance for the construction of ten connectivity projects. These projects are highly needed as they will help in connecting African countries which has weak linkages. These projects were of paramount importance to the attainment of the objectives of the African continental free trade area.

China Investment: You have mentioned on many occasions that it is necessary to form a joint force between the African continent Free Trade Area and China’s “the Belt and Road initiative”, especially in the field of infrastructure construction. Can you elaborate more on this?

Rahamtalla M.Osman: The synergy between the BRI and the AU Agenda 2063 stems from the shared objectives of both initiatives at the local and external levels. The BRI objectives include markets integration connectivity, people to people bond. These same objectives were included in the seven aspirations for the African continent. It aims for a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development, an integrated continent politically united based on ideas of Pan-Africanism. Among these aspirations some are directly related to the BRI, specifically the infrastructure that crisscrosses the continent.

China Investment:  You have mentioned on many occasions that it is necessary to form a joint force between the African continent Free Trade Area and China’s “the Belt and Road initiative”, especially in the field of infrastructure construction. Can you elaborate more on this?

Rahamtalla M.Osman: The synergy between the BRI and the AU Agenda 2063 stems from the shared objectives of both initiatives at the local and external levels. The BRI objectives include markets integration connectivity, people to people bond. These same objectives were included in the seven aspirations for the African continent. It aims for a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development, an integrated continent politically united based on ideas of Pan-Africanism. Among these aspirations some are directly related to the BRI, specifically the infrastructure that crisscrosses the continent.

China Investment:  As the first representative of the African Union in China, you have been working in Beijing for nearly four years. Can you tell us your feelings about working here? Can you share with us something that makes you particularly excited or proud?

Rahamtalla M.Osman: Being the first representative of the AU, I feel honored and privileged to be assigned to China, the country which has a rich historical culture that goes back to thousands of years. Since my arrival to Beijing, I was warmly received by all and they extended to me all assistance I need to discharge my duties in a very smooth manner.
Before the eruption of the COVID-19 pandemic I had the opportunity to visit many provinces and cities. These visits enabled me to enjoy the beauty of this fascinating country which managed in a remarkably short period to accomplish greater achievements which led to the wellbeing of the people and lifted millions out of severe poverty. In this regard I shared what I was privileged to learn with my people in the African continent to benefit from this formidable Chinese experience, which is considered a global paradigm.

《中国投资》：我们都知道，非盟到今年已经成立二十周年了，拥有了五十五个成员国，是发展中国家最大的组织之一。因此，我们首先想请您简要地回顾和总结一下非盟成立的初衷、这些年来的主要工作以及取得的进展。

 拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼：今年，非洲联盟庆祝成立20周年。2002年德班首脑会议启动了非盟，并召开了第一次国家元首和政府首脑会议。在非盟正式启动之前曾举行过三次首脑会议，即：

·1999年9月9日，当时的非洲统一组织（OAU）签署了建立联盟的《苏尔特宣言》。宣言呼吁成立一个组织，以加快非洲大陆的一体化，也使非洲能够在全球经济中发挥更大作用，同时用非洲自己的解决办法应对社会、经济和政治挑战。因此，后来每年9月9日就被作为非洲联盟日来庆祝。

·2000年，洛美首脑会议通过了非洲联盟组织法。

·2001年，卢萨卡首脑会议绘制了实施非盟的路线图。

重新启动非洲泛非组织的决定是非洲领导人达成共识的结果，即为了发挥非洲自身的潜力，有必要将注意力从非统组织一直关注的去殖民化和种族隔离斗争重新转向加强非洲国家之间的合作和一体化，从而推动非洲的发展和经济增长。

《中国投资》：非盟目前最紧迫的工作是什么？有哪些挑战和机遇？

拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼：非洲联盟有一项名为非盟2063年议程的战略。这一议程包含了我们希望的建设非洲的所有愿望，正如当年从殖民国家独立后立即成立了非洲统一组织的先辈们所设想的那样。他们的愿景源于泛非运动，该运动是由一些非洲知识分子在20世纪宣布的。他们渴望有一个统一的非洲大陆，为其人民的福祉服务。实现这些愿望所面临的挑战是多方面的。其中一些是殖民时代的经济政策遗留下来的，非洲大多数国家的经济特点是依赖原材料出口，由于受到国际市场价格的波动，出口的回报就很有限。为了克服这些长期障碍，非洲联盟及其之前的非统组织通过了许多计划和战略，最终形成了2063年议程。

《中国投资》：展望未来，您认为非盟的工作重点应该放在哪些方面？您希望非盟能在哪些方面取得更大的成就？

拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼：由于前面提到的巨大挑战，非盟必须着手同时应对所有这些挑战，因为发展问题都是相互交织的，必须同时解决。不过，我认为基础设施是其中最严峻的挑战，需要引起特别关注。基础设施的重要性在于它包括了实现全面发展所需的所有组成部分，即能源、铁路、公路、机场、港口和信息与通讯技术等。在这方面，主要障碍是非盟国家元首和政府首脑通过的非洲基础设施发展计划（PIDA）中规定的建设一些雄心勃勃的项目所需的巨额资金。据估算，要在非洲大陆建设这些基础设施项目，每年需要约1000亿美元的投资。这一巨大的融资需求不容易获得满足，而且即使得到了，也有其必须承担的后果，即债务负担，这是大多数非洲国家由于经济结构脆弱而面临的一个严重问题。债务危机的不利影响已被人们普遍认识到，长期以来在这方面也有过许多倡议和债务减免战略，但没有得到充分执行，导致危机加深。债务危机还迫使非洲债务国家不得不将大量的出口收入用于偿还外债。这给已经恶化的非洲经济形势增添了又一个挑战。

《中国投资》：二十年来，中国一直与非盟保持着密切的关系，也开展了许多合作。您认为双方在哪些方面取得了成功？您对未来双方的合作有哪些期许？

拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼：在我看来，过去20年里中非合作最显著的成就在基础设施领域，包括道路、机场、港口、铁路和信息技术项目。非洲仍然需要更多的投资和融资，因为这一领域非常重要，但非洲仍很落后。不过，最令人充满希望和备受鼓舞的是，在达喀尔举行的上一届中非合作论坛会议上，中国国家主席习近平宣布，中国将为非洲的十个互联互通项目的建设提供资金。这些项目对非洲来说是非常需要的，因为它们将有助于把联通薄弱的非洲国家连接在一起。这些项目对于实现非洲大陆自由贸易区的目标也至关重要。

《中国投资》：您曾在多个场合提出，有必要在非洲大陆自由贸易区与中国的“一带一路”倡议之间形成合力，特别是在基础设施建设领域。对此您能更深入地阐述一下吗？

拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼：“一带一路”倡议与非盟2063议程之间的协同作用源自两个倡议是非洲及更大范围内的共同目标。“一带一路”倡议的目标包括市场一体化、互联互通以及人与人之间的交往。这些同样的目标也被列为非洲大陆的七项愿景。 非盟2063议程的目标是在包容性增长和可持续发展的基础上建立一个繁荣的非洲，一个基于泛非主义思想的政治统一的一体化大陆。在这些愿景中，有些与“一带一路”倡议直接相关，特别是横贯非洲大陆的基础设施。

《中国投资》：作为首任非盟驻华代表，您在北京工作已经快四年了，能谈谈您在这里工作的感受吗？可以和我们分享一下有什么特别令您感到兴奋或骄傲的事情吗？

拉赫曼·塔拉·奥斯曼：作为非盟的首任驻华代表，我感到非常荣幸和幸运能够被派到中国工作，因为这是一个有着悠久历史文化的国家。自从我抵达北京以来，我受到了所有人的热情接待，他们为我提供了一切所需的协助，使我能够顺利履职。

在新冠疫情暴发前，我有机会访问了中国的许多省市。这些访问使我得以欣赏这个迷人国家的秀美风光，同时也亲身感受到它在极短的时间里取得的重大成就，使数百万人摆脱了严重贫困，让人民过上了幸福的生活。在这方面，我与非洲大陆的人民分享了我有幸学到的东西，希望非洲能从这一被视为全球典范的令人敬畏的中国经验中获益。