Despite the geographical distance, China and Africa enjoy a time-tested friendship. As President Xi Jinping said, "China and Africa are friends tested by adversity. Such friends must never be forgotten." It aptly captures the unbreakable foundation of China-Africa relations. 中国和非洲虽然远隔千山万水，但中非友谊历久弥坚，关系越来越紧密。正如习近平主席所说："中国和非洲国家是患难之交，患难之交不能忘。"这句话道出了中非关系牢不可破的根基所在。 China and African countries have shared weal and woe. Since the 1950s and the 1960s, Chinese and African peoples have supported each other, shared common aspiration and forged a profound brotherhood in their respective fights for national independence and liberation against colonialism and imperialism. The first generation of leaders of China including Chairman Mao Zedong and Premier Zhou Enlai joined hands with their African counterparts to usher in a new era of China-Africa friendship. 中国和非洲国家曾有过相似的遭遇。从上世纪五、六十年代起，中非人民在反殖、反帝、争取民族独立和解放的斗争中，相互支持，遥相呼应，结下了深厚的兄弟情谊。新中国第一代领导人毛泽东、周恩来与非洲老一代领导人携手开启了中非友好的新纪元。 The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation was held in Beijing, China, September 3, 2018. /Xinhua Premier Zhou Enlai's visit to 14 African countries from December 1963 to January 1964 has been celebrated as a glorious chapter in the diplomatic history of China and Africa. African leaders such as Julius Nyerere, Sam Nujoma and Kenneth Kaunda were also well known in China. 1963年底至1964年初，周恩来总理率代表团访问非洲十四国的情景至今让人津津乐道，是中非外交史上的佳话。非洲领导人如尼雷尔、努乔马、卡翁达等是中国人民家喻户晓的名字。 Then-premier and foreign minister Zhou Enlai on the sidelines of the Asian-African Conference, also known as the Bandung Conference, Bandung, Indonesia in April 1955. /Xinhua In the new era, China-Africa friendship has not only become more stable, but incorporated new elements. In March 2013, Xi Jinping chose Africa to be the destination of his first overseas visit as President of China. During his visit, President Xi put forward the principle of "sincerity, real results, amity and good faith" to guide the development of China's policy toward Africa in the new era. He said that China should treat African friends with "sincerity"; China should emphasize "real results" in carrying out cooperation with Africa; China should cement ties with Africa with "amity"; and China should resolve problems in cooperation with "good faith". 进入新时代，中非友谊不仅更加稳固，而且加入了新的内涵。2013年3月，习近平担任国家主席后首次出访，就选择了非洲。访非期间，习近平主席提出"真实亲诚"的对非政策理念，为新时期中非关系的发展指明了方向。他说，对待非洲朋友，我们讲一个"真"字；开展对非合作，我们讲一个"实"字；加强中非友好，我们讲一个"亲"字；解决合作中的问题，我们讲一个"诚"字。 In the past few years, President Xi has visited Africa four times. In the past 30 years, Africa has been the destination of the first overseas visit of the Chinese foreign minister every year. This unique arrangement is found nowhere else in the world. It speaks volumes about the special status of China-African friendship handed down from generation to generation as well as the fact that the development of China-Africa friendship and cooperation remains China's consistent policy and unswerving strategic choice. 几年来，习近平主席已经4次到访非洲。而过去30年间，中国外长的新年首次出访都是选择非洲。这一安排在世界上堪称独特，充分体现了中非友谊代代相传的特殊地位，也表明发展同非洲国家和人民的友好合作关系，是中国外交一以贯之的基本政策和坚定不移的战略选择。 Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Pretoria for a state visit to South Africa, July 23, 2018. /Xinhua China is the largest developing country in the world, and the vast majority of African countries are also in urgent need of development. Therefore, it is all the more important and practical for China and Africa to strengthen cooperation on the basis of consolidated traditional friendship. 中国是世界上最大的发展中国家，非洲绝大多数国家也亟待发展。这样，中非在加强传统友谊的基础上增强合作，就具有更强的现实意义。 At the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in December 2015, China announced that China-Africa cooperation would focus on "five pillars" and "ten cooperation plans". At the consensus of witness Chinese and African leaders, China-Africa relations have been upgraded from a new type of strategic partnership to a comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership. 在2015年12月约翰内斯堡峰会上，中方提出中非合作"五大支柱"和"十大合作计划"。中国与非洲国家一致同意，将中非新型战略伙伴关系提升为全面战略合作伙伴关系。 At the Beijing Summit of the FOCAC in 2018, Chinese and African leaders decided to build a closer community with a shared future between China and Africa, promoting the status of China-Africa relations in the international relations landscape to a new height. 在2018年中非合作论坛北京峰会上，中非领导人确定构建更加紧密的中非命运共同体，将中非关系在国际关系格局中的重要性，提升到一个新的高度。 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Beijing, September, 2018 /Photo by Chinanews.cn China also proposed to focus on implementing the "eight major initiatives" for China-Africa cooperation, ranging from industrial promotion, infrastructure connectivity, trade facilitation, green development, to capacity building, healthcare, people-to-people exchanges, and peace and security. China-Africa ties in the new era are safeguarded and supported by political equality and mutual trust, win-win economic cooperation, exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, mutual assistance in security, and solidary and collaboration in international affairs. 中方提出，重点实施对非合作"八大行动"，涉及产业促进、设施联通、贸易便利、绿色发展、能力建设、健康卫生、人文交流、和平安全等领域。政治上平等互信，经济上合作共赢，文明上交流互鉴，安全上守望相助，国际事务上团结协作，为新时期中非友好合作关系提供了坚实的保障和有力的支撑。 In recent years, China and Africa have constantly expanded areas of their cooperation, with productive projects across Africa yielding positive outcomes and bringing practical benefits to African people. 近年来，中非合作的领域不断拓展，合作项目在非洲大地上遍地开花，硕果累累，给非洲人民带来了实实在在的利益。 According to the Ministry of Commerce of China, bilateral trade between China and Africa reached 208.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2019, an increase of more than 20 times over the year 2000. China remains Africa's largest trading partner for 11 consecutive years. At present, the stock of Chinese investment in Africa has reached 110 billion U.S. dollars, and more than 3700 Chinese enterprises have invested and set up businesses in Africa, injecting a strong impetus to Africa's economic development. 根据商务部统计，2019年中非双边贸易额达到2087亿美元，比2000年增加了20多倍。中国已连续11年成为非洲第一大贸易伙伴。目前，中国对非投资存量达到1100亿美元，共有3700多家企业在非洲投资兴业，为非洲的经济发展注入强劲动力。 China has built more than six thousand kilometers of railways and roads as well as nearly 20 ports and large power stations in Africa. Such infrastructure has boosted Africa's industrialization and enhanced its self-reliance capacity. China has also built 130 plus medical institutions, 45 stadiums and over 170 schools. In the past five years, China has trained 200 thousand African professionals in various fields. 中国在非洲建设的铁路和公路，都已超过6000公里，完成了近20个港口和大型电站的建设，促进了非洲工业化进程，提升了非洲自我造血的能力。在民生领域，中方已援建130多个医疗机构，45个体育场馆，170多所学校。近5年来，为非洲培训各方面专业人才20万人次。 If the Chinese-built Tanzania-Zambia Railway in the 1960s was a witness of the traditional friendship between China and Africa, the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway, the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway and the railways built in Angola and Nigeria are the new milestones of China-Africa friendship and cooperation in the new era. 如果说，上世纪60年代中方援建的坦赞铁路是中非传统友好的见证，那么蒙内铁路、亚吉铁路、以及在安哥拉和尼日利亚建设的铁路则是新时代中非友好合作的里程碑。 Take the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway for example. The 480km standard-gauge railway that connects Mombasa, Kenya's largest port, and the capital Nairobi, has transformed the country's railway conditions from primitive to modern. The Chinese builders equipped the trains with a design speed of 120km per hour and closed-off management that allowed passengers to travel with comfort. All its stations have become local landmarks. 以蒙内铁路为例。由中国公司承建的从肯尼亚最大港口蒙巴萨至首都内罗毕铁路，采用标准轨，全长480公里，设计时速120公里，全程封闭式管理，列车舒适时尚，每一个车站都成为当地地标性建筑，一下子把肯尼亚的铁路水平从原始提升到现代。 The Mazeras Bridge of the Mombasa-Nairobi standard gauge railway in Kenya, May 12, 2017. /Xinhua Since its operation, the occupancy rate of the Mombasa-Nairobi Railway averages at 96.4 percent. It has served a total of 3.4 million passengers and transported 3.12 million tons of cargo, creating 70 thousand jobs for Kenya. At present, the first phase of the Nairobi-Malaba Railway has also started operation. It will connect six East African countries in the future and effectively accelerate economic development of the region. 开通以来，蒙内铁路上座率高达96.4%，累计运送旅客340万人次，累计运送货物312万吨，为肯尼亚创造了7万个工作岗位。目前，内马铁路一期也已正式开通，未来会连接东非六国，将有力促进该地区的经济发展。 China-Africa friendship sets a fine example of building a community with a shared future for mankind. As early as 1963, China began to send medical teams to many African countries. So far, China has dispatched a total of 21 thousand medical teams that benefited 260 million Africans. During the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014, China responded immediately by sending epidemiologists to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone to assist in the fight against the epidemic. 中非友好关系也是构建人类命运共同体的典范。早在1963年，中国就开始向非洲多国派出医疗队。迄今，中国已累计派出2.1万人次的医疗队，2.6亿非洲人民得到无偿医疗救助。2014年，西非爆发埃博拉疫情。中国迅速行动，向几内亚、利比里亚、塞拉利昂等国派出传染病专家协助抗疫。 In the face of the current COVID-19 outbreak in China's Hubei Province, leaders of dozens of African countries, including South Africa, Algeria, Senegal, Kenya and Zambia, expressed their solicitude and support for China. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed sent two letters and had a telephone conversation with President Xi Jinping on February 25. He said that China is a close friend and brother of Ethiopia, and China has always been there when Ethiopia is in need; now that China encounters difficulties, the Ethiopian people stand side by side with and offer their help to the Chinese people. 近期，中国湖北省爆发新冠疫情后，南非、阿尔及利亚、塞内加尔、肯尼亚、赞比亚等数十个非洲国家领导人对中国表示慰问和支持。埃塞俄比亚总理阿比两次致函，又在2月25日与习近平主席通电话。阿比说，中国是埃塞的亲密朋友和兄弟，在埃塞有需要时，中国从未缺席。如今，中国遇到困难，埃塞人民也将同中国人民站在一起，同舟共济。 Medical workers are checking a patient's CT image with a movable CT machine at the "Wuhan Livingroom" makeshift hospital in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province, February 23, 2020. /Xinhua Currently, China has more than two thousand peacekeepers in Liberia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan and other places in Africa. During the peacekeeping missions, some Chinese soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice for the peace of Africa. 目前中国有2000多名维和人员，分别部署在利比里亚、刚果（金）、南苏丹等国。在执行维和任务的过程中，一些中国士兵用自己的鲜血和生命捍卫了非洲大地的和平与安宁。 In March 2013, in a speech in Tanzania, President Xi Jinping said, "The river runs deep because of its source." It is precisely because of their time-tested friendship and cooperation in the new era that the development of China-Africa friendship will be steady and sustained.2013年3月，习近平主席在坦桑尼亚演讲时说："河有源泉水才深"。正因为中非人民有这样同患难、共命运的传统以及新时代的精诚合作，中非友谊之船一定能够行稳致远。