News in brief:
– China is deepening its agricultural cooperation with Africa, aiming to more than double trade to $20 billion by 2030 through technology transfer, zero-tariff policies, and targeted financing.
– While progress is evident, experts say achieving the goal will require greater SME involvement, stronger value chains, and strategic support.
China is strengthening its agricultural collaboration with African nations, aiming to raise agricultural trade to $20 billion by 2030. This ambition was agreed to at the second Forum on China-Africa Agricultural Cooperation in 2023.
At the inaugural Africa-China Forum on Agri-Tech and Industrial Cooperation, China is still sticking to its promise. Chinese Ambassador to Kenya, Guo Haiyan, reaffirmed China’s commitment to sharing home-grown innovations, expertise, and technologies with African partners.
“Our agricultural cooperation focuses on value chains, pest control, agro-processing, and farmer training — all essential to securing Africa’s food future,” she said.
Ibrahim Mayaki, the African Union’s special envoy for food systems, called China an agricultural success story and a model for Africa’s transformation at the event.
“We can leverage China’s achievements in modernisation, rural transformation, and poverty alleviation, while adapting them to African realities,” Mayaki said.
This forum is not standalone, as other events happening at the same time strengthen the argument that China is taking Africa by the hand.
There was the Ghana-China Business Summit in Accra in June 2025, where Ghana invited Chinese investors to help boost local production and value-added exports.
China’s broader vision is to increase the agricultural trade with Africa from $9 billion in 2023 to more than double in just over a decade. Though ambitious, such growth is not unprecedented. Between 2000 and 2018, agricultural trade between Africa and China surged by 965%.
To support this vision, China has launched several initiatives:
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Green Lanes to ease access to African goods in Chinese markets.
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Zero-tariff treatment for 98% of exports from 27 African nations.
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$10 billion in trade financing, and promotional efforts like CAETE expos and livestream campaigns.
However, experts warn that barriers remain, including limited SME involvement, underdeveloped value chains, and climate vulnerabilities. Recommendations include increased infrastructure funding, deeper SME financing, stronger joint ventures, and expanded trade through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
With the 9th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) set for September 2025 in Beijing, many hope it will spark new strategies to hit, or exceed, the $20 billion agricultural trade goal.
