President Paul Kagame is on Friday expected to hold bilateral talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping as part of his two-day official visit to China.Kagame’s meeting with the Chinese president is expected to further lay ground for closer ties and cooperation which the two countries have enjoyed for the last 45 years.Formal cooperation between Rwanda and China was initiated in 1971 and has grown stronger over the past years with both countries working together for shared prosperity.Beyond the meetings of the two Heads of State, members of the private sector on Wednesday had interactions at the Rwanda-China Investment Forum held at the Rwandan Embassy in Beijing.The investment forum attended by about 50 companies was aimed at showcasing opportunities for Chinese investors in the country.The two countries’ ties were further strengthened by a presidential state visit to China in 1995.High ranking Chinese leaders have also visited Rwanda, the most recent being the Chairman of the National People’s Congress (NPC) Zhang Dejiang in March last year, as well as a delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in April of the same year.During Zhang’s visit, he witnessed the groundbreaking ceremony of a government office complex currently under construction which is expected to house the Prime Minister’s office, among other government institutions.The building with an estimated cost of $37million (about Rwf28bn), has capacity  to host 1,100 government employees and is expected to significantly cut government spending on rented space.The two countries’ ties largely border on trade though imports from China are dominant.Development assistance to Rwanda by China is mostly in the form of concessional loans, grant aid, technical support in major projects as well as students’ scholarships in critical sectors such as health, education technology among others.China-Africa relationsChina has positioned itself as a partner for Africa’s progress and is often guided by the Forum for China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) established in 2000.During the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in December 2015, President Xi Jinping announced a three-year $60-billion China’s aid to Africa, which includes a $5-billion package that African countries will access in grants and zero interest loans.Kagame is accompanied by top government officials including the Minister of Foreign Affairs Louise Mushikiwabo, Rwanda’s envoy to China Charles Kayonga among others.