Some African youths who participated in the just concluded 2016 China-Africa youth gala, held in Guangdong, China, commended the Chinese government for organising a youth relations gala between Africa and China.
In different interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the participants said that the programme was an eye-opener for African youths on what China had to offer.
Mr Tichaona Zindoga, one of the participants from Zimbabwe, said that it showed the historical friendship which Africa and China possessed.
He said that Africa was becoming a centre of attraction and that China was leveraging on it to seek to enhance cooperation and solidarity between each other.
“The idea of bringing young people from Africa to China to exchange views implies that China is not looking for what it can do today but what it can do for us in the future.
“You see this exchange is both economic, political, social and cultural so we are going to see China and Africa engage in a multi-faceted way which will be beneficial to the peoples of both continents.’’
Mr Yaqoub Mohamed from Sudan said that the gala was appropriate to help boost relations between Africa and China especially among the youths.
“The youths were the next leaders and that it is important to begin to expose them to what obtains in the larger society.
“I think that when African youths have relations like this with China it will benefit them in the future when they become leaders,’’ he said.
Ms Amina Sanusi from Nigeria said that China-Africa youth relations was a step in the right direction.
She said that already a lot of people from Africa do business with China and involving the youths would enlighten them to what China had to offer.
However, she urged Africans not be at the receiving end at all time but to also look for what to give back to the China in exchange of value placed on the continent.
“We should not be taking from them alone, we should be doing things from our side and also get better because right now we are not doing as much as we should be doing from our side.’’
On his part, Mr Samuel Zewoldi from Eritrea said that youth relation was the starting point for a strategic operation for China-Africa relations.
He said that youth cooperation between China and Africa was very important because youths were the future of the continent.
NAN reports that the gala was aimed promoting the “Bandung Spirit of Solidarity, Friendship and Cooperation”.
It is expected to further promote the Bandung Spirit and enhance the mutual understanding and cooperation of young people between China and Africa.
Nigeria and 17 other African countries participated in the gala.
Others were Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Togo, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Gabon, Congo and Democratic Republic of Congo.