Deputy PM leaves for 5th FOCAC Ministerial Meeting in China

Addis Ababa, July 18 (WIC) - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Hailemariam Desalegn, has left for China on July 17th, 2012c to attend the fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

The meeting is being held in Beijing from July 19th to July 20th. It will be attended by the Foreign Ministers and Ministers for Foreign Economic Cooperation from 50 African countries and from China as well as the Chairperson of the African Union.

The Conference will review the implementation of follow-up activities from the fourth ministerial conference of the Forum in 2009, as well as examine and adopt the "Beijing Declaration" and "Beijing Action Plan (2013-2015)" to define new cooperative programs to be undertaken over the next three years.

The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation was launched as a collective consultation and dialogue mechanism between China and African countries in 2000.