At the invitation of the National School of Administration (ENA) in Senegal and the National School of Government (NSG) in South Africa, a delegation of the China-Africa Institute (CAI), led by President Ye Hailin, visited the two countries for academic exchange from March 8 to 16, 2025.

The delegation members included Shen Xiaolei, Deputy Director of the Division of Political Studies and the Deputy Director of the Centre of Southern African Studies; Wang Hongyi, Associate Research Fellow from the Division of Security Studies; Guo Jia, Deputy Director of the Division of Ethnic and Religious Studies; Zhao Yating, Associate Research Fellow from the Division of International Relations Studies and Executive Secretary of the Centre of Southern African Studies; and Dr. Meng Jin from the Division of Political Studies.  

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Group Photo at the National School of Administration, Senegal

CAI delegation is having meeting with experts from the Center for Diplomatic and Strategic Studies

During their visit to Senegal from March 8 to 11, the delegation held a meeting with experts from the National School of Administration. The two sides reached principled consensus on the establishment of a center for China and Africa studies, and the co-hosting of the Forum of West Africa and the China-Africa-Europe-India Quadrilateral Dialogue and Cooperation Forum in April 2025. Furthermore, the delegation visited the Center for Diplomatic and Strategic Studies of Senegal, where they had in-depth discussions with Senegalese experts on conducting collaborative academic research, promoting academic exchanges, and jointly organizing international conferences.

Group photo at the National School of Government (NSG), South Africa

CAI delegation is having meeting with officials of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality

Ye Hailin and African scholars

During their visit to South Africa from March 12 to 16, the delegation held a meeting with officials of the National School of Government (NSG). The two sides reached principled consensus on the establishment of a center for China and Africa studies in South Africa. The delegation also visited the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality (CoJ) and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits University). 

At the CoJ, the delegation had discussions with Mayor Dada Morero on strengthening communication and cooperation in governance practices, talents training programs, and people-to-people exchange. At Wits University, the delegation held a meeting with scholars from the Department of International Relations and the Department of Critical Diversity Studies, covering topics such as the security situation in Africa, U.S.-Africa relations, and the evolving global order.