'We're more than that' -- African youth hope to learn China's experience to advance their countries' independent development
By Guan Yilun
(ECNS) -- How would you describe Africa?
For Patrick Molo of Cameroon Radio Television, this continent "has things that can make us laugh", while Africans take pride in who they are and value what they call "brotherhood".
At the invitation of China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, more than 60 young African representatives, including Molo, recently arrived in Beijing to attend the 10th China-Africa Youth Festival. During their stay in the Chinese capital, they visited the Palace Museum and the Museum of the Communist Party of China (CPC), among other sites, before travelling to Shaanxi Province on Saturday, October 31, for further visits.
This is the first time Néstor Carvalhal Andrade, Adjunct at the Office of the President of the Republic of Cabo Verde, has visited China. He has been impressed by the Chinese people's discipline and respect for others.
Andrade expressed keen interest in youth development. In his view, the Museum of the Communist Party of China (CPC) not only tells the story of China but also reveals the mindset of a nation that has endured war and overcome difficulties. Through museums like this, Andrade said, generations of people would grow up with these values, continually challenging themselves to improve.
"Young people (in Africa) are super bright, visionary, and creative," Andrade said. He believes education systems should be designed to help children and young people understand that everyone has a role to play, rather than being seen as someone to be pitied. "You need to take full ownership of your destiny."
Elihuruma Eliufoo Stephano, who works at the University of Dodoma in Tanzania, has always considered himself someone who has benefited from education, saying that people can overcome difficulties through the knowledge they've acquired. Stephano is now pursuing further studies and research in psychiatry with the support of the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University in Hunan Province, China. For him, the mentorship, training and teaching he has gained are invaluable.
In just a few days, Itumeleng Nthabiseng Sekhamane, a lecturer at the National University of Lesotho, has made many friends. "I haven't been to most African countries, but now I've met people from almost every African country," she said. This experience has also reminded her that, although Africans are different, they can still come together. "It's something to really strive towards."
Sekhamane believes that China's progress in many fields stems from the country's ability to remain committed to a common goal over the long term. She said this is also what African countries need. "Once we have a goal as a people, we have one purpose. That can bring us together and can drive us when things are hard."
She hopes that African countries will further strengthen cooperation and make effective use of their resources in the future, so that "we could be quite a strong continent".
For Andrade, the world should not continue to see Africa in the same way. Africa is more than jungles, safaris and infrastructure. "We are more than that."