KIGALI - The Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yang Jiechi will arrive in the country on Wednesday for a one day official visit, to discuss ways of further strengthening China-Rwanda relations, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed.

The Chinese Minister who will be on an African tour that will see him visit four other countries on the continent including, Burundi, Ethiopia, South-Africa and Zimbabwe is expected to pay a courtesy call on President Paul Kagame at Urugwiro Village, before making a tour of projects funded or supported by the Chinese Government across the country.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rosemary Museminali told Journalists earlier that the Chinese Minister’s visit will be a case in point to cement the already flourishing bilateral relations existing between the two countries.

Museminali confirmed the visit by the Chinese official on Thursday and held a consultative meeting with the Chinese Ambassador to Rwanda, Sun Shuzhong to discuss several issues ahead of the Ministers visit.

"China remains our good partner in development and we are looking forward to strengthening the diplomatic and bilateral relations between the two countries” said Museminali.

China is among Rwanda’s strongest development partners and has funded different projects in the health, agriculture, infrastructure and education sectors since 1994.

Rwanda is also among the African countries benefiting from the China-Africa Cooperation arrangement including the initiative known as Special Preferential Tariff Treatment (SPT) programme which allows tax free entry of Rwandan products into China.

China recently granted Rwanda the ‘Approved Destination Status’, a green light given by the Chinese Government to its citizens, encouraging them to visit the particular country or destination as tourists.

During his visit to Rwanda, Minister Jiechi is expected to visit some of the many projects funded by China in Rwanda and to also further discuss some of the projects the Chinese Government agreed to support this year and in the coming years.

The projects that have been funded by the Asian country include a cement factory (CIMERWA) based in Bugarama District, Western Province, rice processing plants in Rwamagana and Nyagatare and a hospital in Ngoma all in the Eastern Province.

In 2006, Rwanda and China signed the 5th Joint Committee on Economic, Technical and Trade Cooperation in which China offered assistance to construct offices for the Ministry of Foreign affairs in Kimihurura, the State House and to give assistance towards the implementation of the Bamboo cultivation, processing and utilisation project.

Through the China-Africa Cooperation initiative, China has doubled its assistance to Africa since 2006, providing about $5bn in preferential credit and loans as well as setting up a $5bn China-Africa development fund to help Chinese companies in Africa.

China emerging as one of the worlds leading economies also opened up its market to Africa by increasing export items from the continent from 190 to over 440 tariff- free products, a move that prompted developed countries to criticise China’s ambitious venture into Africa, branding it a plan by China to exploit African resources to feed its insatiable and growing industrial sector.

However, they have since received backing from theWorld Bank, arguing that most of China’s activities in Africa are aimed at poverty reduction, citing availability of market for African products and infrastructure development as some of the positive developments China has brought to Africa.

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