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St. Petersburg Plans to Expand Cooperation with African Countries

Preparations for the Second Russia–Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum are being made by the Russian regions on a regular basis. The plans and objectives set by the first Russia–Africa Summit and Economic Forum are being implemented, and negotiations with African countries on new joint projects are underway.

St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov informed the Organizing Committee of the Second Russia–Africa Summit and other events in the Russia–Africa format to be held in the Russian Federation in 2023 about the work that the city is doing in this area:

“St. Petersburg intends to develop cooperation with African countries on a wide range of issues. Among the most promising areas is the design and construction of water supply and wastewater treatment facilities. This is important for many African countries, and we have a lot of experience in this area. Traditionally, young people from African countries come to study in our country. In the academic year 2022/2023, we will have 2,580 African students studying in our universities. This is 7.27% of all foreign students. We are also considering holding joint cultural and sporting events with Alexandria, our sister city in Egypt. On the sidelines of the Russia–Africa Summit, we plan to sign a roadmap,” noted Governor Beglov.

In addition, on the sidelines of the Summit and the Russia–Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum, agreements are planned to be signed on developing cooperation in tourism with relevant organizations in Morocco, Kenya, Namibia, Egypt, Tunisia, and Angola in terms of tourism education. The UNESCO Creative Cities Network is preparing a draft agreement with the creative cities of South Africa (Cape Town, Durban, and Hermanus) and Benin (Bohicon).

The Second Russia–Africa Summit and Economic and Humanitarian Forum will take place in St. Petersburg from 26 to 29 July.

For more information go to the official website summitafrica.ru.

“We highly value the results of our joint work at the summit. I am sure the achieved results are creating a good foundation for further deepening the Russia-Africa partnership in the interests of our nations’ prosperity and wellbeing.”

President of the Russian Federation
Vladimir Putin

The Russia–Africa Summit, which is taking place in Sochi on 23–24 October 2019, encapsulates the historically friendly relations between the African continent and the Russian Federation. This Summit carries great significance as it is the first of its kind to emerge during a period of major global and international transformations. In response to the aspirations of the people it is representing, the Summit intends to build a comprehensive framework for expanding Russian–African relations into broader horizons of joint cooperation across different fields.

The African nations and Russia share a common understanding of international relations, based on the principles of respect for the rule of international law, equality, non-interference in the internal affairs of states, and the peaceful resolution of disputes. Both sides affirm their commitment to support multilateral actions to oppose new international threats, be they terrorism and extremism in all their forms, or declining growth rates. The two sides share a firm conviction regarding the importance of developing trade flows and supporting mutual investment in such a way as to ensure security, peace and development for the African and Russian people.

African countries have huge potential and opportunities that will allow them, once efforts to streamline their economies have been achieved, to emerge as real global players. In recent years, the nations of this continent have achieved major successes spanning the political, economic, social and administrative spheres. Africa has flourished in terms of growth over the past decade, reaching a continent-wide growth rate of 3.55% in 2018.

The African Union Summit, which was held in Niger in July 2019, continued the efforts of the African countries and saw the African Continental Free Trade Agreement come into force, along with its operational instruments. The agreement is one of the key objectives of Agenda 2063, an African development strategy that has been created to address the African people’s desire for prosperity and decent living standards.

These successes are opening up wide-ranging prospects for cooperation between African countries and the Russian Federation, and confirm the determination of African governments and their people to cooperate with multiple partners in order to establish mutually beneficial relations.

With this in mind, we express our hopes that the Russia–Africa Summit will help in the establishment of constructive strategic relations, based on partnership between two sides across various fields, and in the service of fulfilling the hopes and aspirations of the African people and their friends in Russia.

President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
Abdelfattah ALSISI