Distinguish Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Friends:
It is my great pleasure to attend today's seminar. I warmly congratulate the Centre for China Studies on the successful convening of the seminar on the same theme held in Abuja last Friday, which has built this a premier platform to explore how China’s zero-tariff policy can generate tangible economic dividends and accelerate Africa’s structural transformation. On behalf of the Chinese Consulate General in Lagos, I sincerely wish this seminar builds on past achievements and yields fruitful outcomes! I look forward to all distinguished guests speaking freely and contributing more valuable insights to China-Africa cooperation for mutual benefits and common development!
The year 2026 marks the 70th anniversary of the launch of diplomatic relations between China and Africa. On February 14, President Xi Jinping, in a congratulatory message to the 39th African Union Summit, announced that China would implement a zero-tariff policy on all tariff lines for products from 53 African countries with diplomatic ties with China from 1 May, 2026. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi vividly described this initiative as an arithmetic equation: using the “subtraction” of tariffs to drive the “addition” of trade and achieve the “multiplication” of livelihoods, thereby creating greater opportunities for Africa through China’s vast market. This is a substantive policy of China to expand high-level opening-up at the outset of the 15th Five-Year Plan period, and a key step in advancing the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC)—Beijing Action Plan (2025–2027). It will inject new momentum into the shared pursuit of modernization between China and Africa.
Just three and a half months after taking effect, the policy’s benefits are already clearly visible. China-Africa trade in the first half of this year can be defined by several highlights: First, total trade volume has grown at a faster pace. To date, China-Africa two-way trade totaled $207.4 billion, a record high for the first half of the year. The total trade is expected to reach a new high by the end of this year. Second, trade structure has been improved. According to statistics, capital goods and intermediate goods account for 75 percent of China’s exports to Africa, which are production inputs needed for Africa’s industrialization and agricultural modernization, rather than for consumption only. Third, the potential of Africa’s export to China keeps unlocking. In May and June following the implementation of zero-tariff treatment for all African countries having diplomatic ties with China, China’s imports from Africa reached $28.5 billion, up by 23.5 percent year on year. To date, African dried chilies, coffee beans, cashews and wild aquatic products have enjoyed unified regional market access. Estimates show that the zero-tariff policy has boosted overall African exports to China by roughly 6%. Nigeria’s performance has been especially striking: total bilateral trade reached $18 billion in the first half of the year, up 35% year-on-year, while Chinese imports from Nigeria surged 80% to $2.3 billion, with monthly growth exceeding 40% in both May and June.
Following our recent agreement on export protocols for Nigerian wild aquatic products, market access issues are being resolved in one package. Tariff eliminations ranging from 3% to 10% have delivered immediate savings across key exports: every 100 tons of sesame exported saves $11,000 in costs; Nigeria’s annual export of 7,000 tons of cattle bone granules saves nearly $450,000; and on day one of the policy, a single shipment of 23,000 tons of Nigerian liquefied propane with $300,000 in tax savings, bringing fresh opportunities for broader bilateral economic and trade cooperation.
I fully support the initiative of H.E. Mr. Joseph Tegbe, Minister of Power of Nigeria, calling for accelerated implementation of agreements, support for businesses to meet China's inspection and certification standards, and the translation of market access into real export and investment gains. Many Nigerian visionaries have likewise urged Nigeria to make greater use of China's market, capital, technology and industrial capacity to transform its aquatic sector from traditional farming into a modern, large-scale and export-oriented industry.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The world is undergoing profound shifts unseen in a century. As the world grapples with the spillover of regional hotspot issues and a resurgence of unilateralism and protectionism, China remains firmly committed to expanding high-standard opening up through its zero-tariff policy, demonstrating its sense of responsibility as a major country. This has been widely welcomed by African countries and commended by the international community.
The zero-tariff initiative highlights the defining feature of “mutual benefit and win-win cooperation” in the China-Africa community with a shared future. Expanding trade preferences has long been an important way for China to share development dividends with Africa, with our market access gradually extending from least developed countries to all African countries with diplomatic relations with China. This latest move to grant zero tariff on 100% of tariff lines for products from 53 African countries will further expands our profit concession and accelerate the entry of African products into the Chinese market, injecting fresh vitality into China-Africa economic and trade cooperation. At the same time, China will upgrade a range of supporting measures, including establishing “green channels” for African exports to China, opening commodity exhibition and sales platforms, and promoting cross-border e-commerce. These efforts will further streamline information flows, reduce trade costs, enable precise matching of supply and demand, and fully unlock the policy dividends.
The zero-tariff policy also reflects China’s responsibility as a major country in firmly safeguarding the international economic and trade order. At present, a few major powers are pursuing unilateralism, protectionism, and trade bullying, which have severely impacted the global economic and trade system and posed significant challenges to developing countries, including those in Africa. Against this backdrop, China’s decision to grant zero tariff to African countries with diplomatic ties—without attaching any political conditions—not only provides stable market expectations for African countries and boosts their confidence in economic growth, but also contributes to maintaining the stability of the global trading system and creating a favorable institutional environment for China and Africa to jointly achieve modernization. The UN Secretary-General António Guterres, during the 39th African Union Summit, highly praised China’s zero-tariff initiative for Africa, appealing to all developed countries and nations with large economic potential to take exactly the same measure.
Ladies and gentlemen,
On March 26 this year, China and Nigeria signed the Framework Agreement on Economic Partnership for Shared Development. The two sides will jointly promote the development of Nigeria’s manufacturing industry, facilitate the transformation and upgrading of its agriculture, and enhance its global market competitiveness. Negotiations will be conducted in areas including the liberalization and facilitation of trade in goods and services, strengthening cooperation on green development, investment, and digital trade. This represents an important step in implementing the outcomes of the FOCAC Beijing Summit and another major achievement in China-Nigeria economic and trade cooperation, helping establish long-term, stable, and predictable institutional guarantees for bilateral trade and investment, turning temporary preferences into institutional guarantees.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This year also marks the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Nigeria. The Consulate General of China in Lagos stands ready to take the zero-tariff initiative as an opportunity, based on our consular district covering the 20 states in southern Nigeria, and drawing on the prominent position of Lagos State in particular as the economic and financial hub and strategic gateway of West Africa, to actively facilitate business exchanges and cooperation between the two countries, provide greater convenience for Nigeria to expand exports to China, promote the transition from primary commodity exports to value-added product exports, and support Nigeria in achieving diversified and high-quality development.
As President Xi Jinping pointed out, “Without our modernization (China and Africa), there will be no global modernization”. China is committed to working with Nigeria and other African countries to fully leverage the favorable zero-tariff policy, further deepen mutually beneficial cooperation, transform China’s vast market into Africa’s great opportunity, and jointly open a new chapter in building an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era.
Thank you.