Legal Cooperation Steadies and Sustains China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation

Edited by:Zhang Gan

Translated by: Li Tingting, Xiao Liang

Source: Hunan Daily

On July 11,the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation—LegalForum (2025)opened in Changsha. It marked another high-profile China-Africa exchange and cooperation event hosted in Hunan, following this year’sMinisterial Meeting of Coordinators on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperationandthe 4th China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo.

At the forum, legal professionals from 26 Chinese and African countries gatheredtochart a shared courseunder the themeLegalCooperationin Economyand Trade,JoinHands toBuild a High-Level China-Africa Community with a Shared Future. Participants widely agreed that the rule of law has become a key safeguard for steady, sustained China-Africa economic and trade cooperation.

Hunan’s Unique Advantages for China-AfricalegalCooperation

“It’s a great pleasure to be in Hunan.I have gained a lot here.” said Abdelraouf Abdelhalim Abdelraouf Abouzeid, Chief Prosecutor at the Egyptian Public Prosecution, speaking at the opening ceremony.

HisTour inHunan began five days earlier. Along with 23 participants from African countries, he attended the CourseofAfrican Law and Socio-Economic Developmentat Xiangtan University.

In recent years, leveraging platforms like thiscourseandthe China-Africa Legal Talent Training Base, Hunan has provided professional legal training for nearly 1,000 African legal professionals.

Beyond legal education and training, Hunan hasmadeseveral firsts in China-Africalegalcooperation, including establishingthe China’s first China-Africa Economic and Trade Arbitration Court, settingupthe CIETAC China-Africa Hearing Center, and buildingthe firstAfrican Law Databasecovering over 20 African countries

“This arbitrates disputes between Chinese and African parties, as well as commercial disputes of Chinese enterprises in Africa. Hearings are flexible, including online arbitration, which significantly reduces costs for parties,” explained Hong Yonghong, Dean of the Institute of African Economic and Trade Law at Xiangtan University and President of the China-Africa Economic and Trade Arbitration Court. His remarks drew attention from delegates across countries.

One monthago, at the 4th China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo, the Arbitration Court made its debut, providing legal consultation to over 100 enterprises and establishing cooperation intentions with more than 10 institutions.

“These achievements in Hunan have emerged at the right time,” Hong noted. National platforms like the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo and the Pilot Zone for Deepening China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation have settled in Hunan. Over the past five years, Hunan’s annual trade volume with Africa has grown by an average of 20.2%, ranking first in central and western China and making it one of China’s most active provinces for China-Africa economic and trade cooperation. “Hunan boasts unique advantages for advancing China-Africalegalcooperation.”

SustainedlegalSupport for China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation

Discussionson overcoming challengesin China-Africalegalcooperation wereheatedat the forum.

“China-Africa economic and trade cooperation urgently needs interdisciplinary talents proficient in law, English, African languages, and the laws of target countries,” emphasized Chen Yunliang, Dean and Professor at theLawSchool of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.He called for breaking barriers in education models, advancing in-depthindustry-university-research integration, and adopting tailored training programs.

“Improving dispute resolution mechanisms is crucial for deepening cooperation and enhancing facilitation,” stated Teddy Kamembo Milambo, Legal Director-General of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He introduced that the establishment of a joint China-Africa chamber of commerce with commercial mediation and trade dispute resolution functions has provided institutional safeguards for multilateral economic and trade cooperation. Building an online China-Africa economic and trade dispute resolution platform can offer diversified services, including online mediation and arbitration.

The rule of law is not only a navigator for industrial capacity cooperation but also a value creator. Wang Jiaguo, General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and General Manager of the Legal and

Compliance Department of China Railway Construction Corporation Limited, shared the company’s innovative practicesin foreign-related rule of law. For the Addis Ababa–Djibouti Railwayproject, the enterprise innovatively integrated Chinese standards with the host country’s demands and incorporated them into contractual agreements. This has made it Africa’s first railway featuring full industrial chain localization with Chinesestyle, integrating design specifications, investment and financing support, and other comprehensive services. In Ethiopia, the company collaborated with local banks to design financial solutions such as fund pools and cross-border settlement guarantees, legally and compliantly overcoming operational bottlenecks.

Drawing on the company’s three decades of experience in economic and trade cooperation across Africa, Fu Jingying, General Manager of Overseas Business Department of Sinosteel Group, proposed accelerating the negotiation and conclusion of investment protection agreements. She suggested incorporating appropriate clauses on the stability of laws and policies to mitigate the impact of changes in the legal environment on corporate operations.

Forum on China-AfricaCooperation—Legal Forum(2025)China-Africa Legal Cooperation Initiativewas released at the closing ceremony. The Initiative clarifies a series of key undertakings, includingjointly fostering interdisciplinary legal talents tailored to the needs of China-Africa economic and trade cooperation, exploring in-depth integration between the digital economy and legal services, and jointly developing legal risk prevention mechanisms for infrastructure development and production capacity cooperation projects. It aims to deliver sustainedlegalsupport and guarantees for China-Africa economic and trade cooperation.

“We are convinced that with the joint efforts of both sides, China-Africa economic, trade andlegalcooperation will continue to deepen.”As envisioned in the Initiative, participating delegates expressed full confidence that by improving thelegalcooperation framework and innovating legal service models, China-Africa economic and trade cooperation will surely achieve more fruitful outcomes in key areas including infrastructure construction, digital economy and production capacity cooperation.

(The forum wassponsored by the China Law Society, and co-organized by Xiangtan University, Hunan Law Society and China Legal Exchange Center.)