Countries should work together for the good of Africa

In his attention-grabbing visit to Africa last week, US President Barack Obama made misleading remarks about China's cooperation with Africa, which has created the impression that the United States sees China as a rival, rather than a cooperative partner, in the African continent.

"The US isn't the only country that sees your growth as an opportunity and that is a good thing," Obama said in a speech in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa.

"But economic relationships can't simply be about building countries' infrastructure with foreign labor or extracting Africa's natural resources. Real economic partnerships have to be a good deal for Africa. They have to create jobs and capacity for Africans," Obama said.