Trade ministers from China and African nations convened this week during the WTO's 14th Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé, Cameroon, to strengthen industrial collaboration. Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao announced plans to establish five new China-Africa industrial cooperation hubs, building on existing economic zones that attracted over $13 billion in investment by 2025.
Wang highlighted China's role in boosting Africa's local processing capacity from 15% to 45% through infrastructure projects and skills training. "Our industrial parks have generated $55.5 billion in output value," he stated, pledging to expand intermediate goods exports and support Africa's WTO Investment Facilitation Agreement efforts.
Ghana's Trade Minister Elizabeth Ofosu-Adjare emphasized Africa's need to increase its 3% global manufacturing share, urging joint ventures in mineral processing and green technology. China-Africa trade reached $348 billion in 2025, with Ethiopia's Kassahun Gofe citing Chinese-funded projects like the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway as job creation models.
