China-Africa People’s Forum to open in Sudan tomorrow

 The  third China-Africa People’s Forum is scheduled for  Khartoum city ,  Sudan tomorrow.

The Sudan gathering which will run for two days beginning on Monday May 12^th to 13^th is an extra-ordinary meeting called to highlight achievements and hurdles ahead of the 2015 deadline on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on poverty alleviation.

ZANIS staffer Mubiana Simasiku reports from Beijing China that CNNIE Deputy Secretary General, Shi Guohui stated said this in a communiqué today obtained in Beijing, China.

Mr. Shi  stated that that 50 Chinese delegates from government departments, NGOs, Academic and business communities as well as the media are scheduled to attend the forum.

Among the expected Chinese attendants are the Chinese President Wang Zhizhen, Vice Chairperson of the National committee of the 11^th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Vice President of the Chinese association for international Understanding and Li Jinjun, Executive Vice President of China NGO Network for International Exchanges.

From Africa, 50 delegates from 20 countries will attend the forum in addition to the 40 delegates from the host country.

Mr. Shi  revealed that the opening ceremony of the meeting will be attended by the top leadership of Sudan and other African countries as well as some former African political leaders he did not name.

The CNNIE Deputy Secretary General also indicated that the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will not be present at the meeting but will address the forum with a video message.

Mr Shi said the forum was supposed to be held after three years as the recent one which was the 2^nd Forum was held in July 2012 in Suzhou city of Jiangsu province in China but the Sudan meeting has been organised following numerous requests from 35 African countries that have lagged behind in meeting the benchmarks of attaining the MDGs before 2015.

He further said the Sudanese government took the lead to spearhead for the meeting hence the holding of the forum in Sudan.

The 3rd China-Africa People’s Forum will be held under the theme “Sharing experience, deepening cooperation and taking action – joining efforts towards poverty reduction”.