Commissioned by the International Liaison Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the delegation of young leaders from political parties of African countries visited SPI from May 20 to May 25 for research and exchange. The delgation has a total of 28 members from 14 African countries. They are young leaders of the ruling parties or heads of youth affairs.

SHEN Wei, the Executive Vice President of SPI, met with all members of the delegation and delivered a welcome speech. He said that General Secretary XI Jinping emphasized on many occasions that the concept of “going hand in hand” is rooted in the traditional friendship and mutual support between China and Africa, and China and Africa have always been in the same community; the delegation members visit to Shanghai could further enhance mutual understanding, deepen traditional friendship between China and Africa and expand communication and understanding among young people. The head of the delegation and the Deputy General Secretary of Gabon, Marius ASSOUMOU NDONG, said in his speech: “We appreciate the invitation of the Communist Party of China as well as the thoughtful reception and arrangement of Shanghai Party Institute. We come to China and Shanghai to learn from the experience of the Communist Party of China in reform and development, as well as the practice of youth work.”

This research focused on the theme “how can young people play a role in exploring the development path in line with national conditions.” In order to improve the pertinence and effectiveness, this research fully combined the characteristic of delegation members as youth leaders in terms of trip design, featured design, research forms, site selection and people to exchange with. Featured presentations were made on the topics such as the general introduction to China and the Communist Party of China, XI Jinpings thought on socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, and the course and enlightenment of Chinas reform and opening up. Field researches were made in Huayang Sub-district of Changning District, Shanghai PartnerX Robotics Co., Ltd. and Mayi Maker Town to learn Shanghais grass-roots social governance, development of artificial intelligence industry, construction of youth employment and entrepreneurship platform and mechanism, etc. At the same time, the members of the delegation visited the Shanghai Committee of the Communist Youth League to learn about the relevant practices and experiences of China and Shanghai in the field of youth work. A salon was held for Chinese and foreign trainees to discuss and exchange on such topics as “how to guide young people to participate effectively in social affairs” and “how can young people get better jobs or start their own businesses in the internet era”. In addition, the members went to the Chinese Martial Arts Museum of Shanghai University of Sport to watch performances of traditional martial arts and experience the extensive and profound Chinese traditional culture. In the process of research, communication and experience, the members felt their sensitive hearts, listened carefully, exchanged actively and interacted fully, and the atmosphere was very lively and enthusiastic.

The members gave positive comments on this trip to Shanghai. A member said, “This time I came to Shanghai and saw that XI Jinping’s thoughts are being actively and fully practiced on the land of China and I felt the charm of Shanghai and the vitality of China. We have a lot to learn from China.” Another member said: “We have seen a lot, heard a lot, and learned a lot in the past few days. What I have seen and heard are valuable assets and information for me personally. I’ll study them when I return to my own country.” When leaving Shanghai, the members praised: “Shanghai is a modern international metropolis and Shanghai Party Institute has beautiful environment, first-class facilities and solid strength. We are grateful to all the staff for their hard work in this research. We wish China-Africa friendship will last forever!”