From March 12 to 19, Yuan Mindao, Vice President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), led a delegation to Madagascar and Seychelles. The delegation had in-depth exchanges with people from all sectors of society in both countries and organized events for people-to-people friendship, subnational cooperation and cultural exchanges. Delegations from China's Jiangxi Province and the cities of Xi'an, Zhuhai and Chengdu, participated in the relevant activities.
During their stay in Madagascar, the delegation paid courtesy calls on Augustin Andrianamanaruru, First Deputy Speaker of the Malagasy National Assembly, Rakotoarisoa, President of the Madagascar-China Parliamentary Friendship Group, and Harilala Ramanantsoa, Mayor of Antananarivo, the capital city. They visited the Confucius Institute, attended the Seminar on China-Madagascar People-to-People Friendship and had in-depth exchanges with the heads of a number of Malagasy organizations for friendship with China and six Malagasy provinces and cities. The Panorama of Chinese Culture and China-Madagascar Cultural Night events, hosted in collaboration with the Chinese Embassy in Madagascar, showcased outstanding Chinese cultural heritage and the art of Chinese opera, including porcelain, paper-cutting, lacquerware, Shu embroidery, and Qinqiang Opera, to the local community through live and televised programs. These events were warmly received by the Malagasy people and the local Chinese community.
During the visit to Seychelles, the delegation paid courtesy calls on Ahmed Afif, Vice President of Seychelles, Sylvestre Radegonde, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Justin Davis Valentin, Minister of Education, David André, Secretary General of the Seychelles Institute of Culture, Heritage, and the Arts, Lydia Charlie, Acting Mayor of Victoria, and Li Guimei, President of the Chinese Federation of Seychelles. They participated in the handover ceremony for the Seychelles Broadcasting and Television Center, a key project of China's assistance to Seychelles. What's more, they conducted working-level discussions and signed a memorandum of cooperation with Vincent Meriton, Chairman of the Association for the Promotion of Friendship between Seychelles and China and former Vice President of Seychelles, and facilitated and witnessed the signing of an intention letter on friendly cooperation between Zhuhai City of China and Victoria City of Seychelles.
During the visit, Yuan Mindao highly praised the contributions made by various sectors in both countries toward enhancing exchanges and cooperation with China and strengthening people-to-people friendship. They had in-depth exchanges of views on topics such as people-to-people exchanges, cultural exchanges, and subnational cooperation, leading to positive consensus. Yuan Mindao emphasized that the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) has charted a new blueprint for China-Africa cooperation and provided fresh momentum for the development of China-Africa relations in the new era. The visit aimed to implement the guidelines of the Beijing Summit and President Xi Jinping's important instructions regarding the CPAFFC's work, build more bridges of people-to-people exchanges, practical cooperation, cultural exchanges, and youth friendship between China and Madagascar and between China and Seychelles, contributing nongovernmental strength to the building of an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era
Representatives from all sectors in both countries highly commended the friendly relations between China and Madagascar, as well as between China and Seychelles. They congratulated China on its remarkable development achievements, expressed gratitude for China's selfless assistance and valuable support, and fully acknowledged the critical role of people-to-people exchanges, cultural exchanges and subnational cooperation in driving the development of bilateral relations and improving people's wellbeing. They also expressed their willingness to work with the CPAFFC to make new contributions to the friendship between China and Madagascar, as well as between China and Seychelles.
During the visit, the delegation from Jiangxi Province provided financial support to the Confucius Institute at the University of Antananarivo. The delegation from Xi'an reached an agreement with the Malagasy side regarding online art class training and introduced the scholarship program for studying in China to the Ministry of Education of Seychelles. The delegation from Chengdu offered free art training opportunities to the Malagasy side and concluded agreements on cultural and creative product cooperation with the Seychelles side.
