An FTA between China, African nations will boost global trade

At their meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2015, African and Chinese leaders set an ambitious goal: raising China's foreign direct investment in stocks in Africa from $32.4 billion in 2014 to $100 billion in 2020 and increasing two-way trade from $220 billion to $400 billion.

The ongoing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in Beijing is an ideal occasion for the Chinese and African leaders to review the progress of their ambitious plan and consider injecting, if necessary, institutional expertise to realize the two goals, as well as make China's FDI in Africa and two-way trade sustainable and mutually beneficial. That could also be an essential part of their political declaration and action plan after the conclusion of the FOCAC summit on Tuesday.

Many have suggested that China and African countries, represented by African Union, should launch a feasibility study on free trade and investment facilitation negotiation with the aim of completing the detailed text of the plan before their next summit, and guarantee high-level standards for trade and investment facilitation by 2025.