Zhejiang’s Jinhua steps up efforts to become a leading hub for cooperation with Africa
Growing trade, sustained educational partnerships and closer cultural ties are strengthening cooperation between Africa and Jinhua, a city in China’s Zhejiang Province.
Jinhua’s trade and economic ties with Africa continue to expand, reflecting the mutual benefits that have long underpinned China-Africa cooperation. From January through September, the city’s trade with Africa totaled 161.41 billion yuan, up 35.3% from a year earlier. Exports rose 29.6% to 144.51 billion yuan, the highest value of any Chinese city and 10.3% of China’s total exports to Africa.
Jinhua is capitalizing on the global transition to green energy, with a growing competitive edge in lithium batteries, photovoltaic products and electric passenger vehicles, China’s “new trio” export categories. These products continue to sell well in African markets. Zhejiang Jujiang New Energy Technology Co., Ltd. specializes in developing and manufacturing battery packs for home energy storage and batteries for specialized power applications. “Africa is one of the world’s fastest-growing green energy markets. Our energy storage products, designed to address limited grid coverage, frequent outages and the high cost of diesel power generation, have been well received,” said Lin Wancheng, director of the company’s international sales and marketing center.
As goods made in Jinhua gain popularity in Africa, African products are also flowing into the city. Trade between Jinhua and Africa is thriving, supported by the city’s pilot free trade zone, comprehensive bonded zone, specialized markets and logistics hubs. These strengths are helping Jinhua become a distribution center for African goods in China. The import cost of copper and other raw metals has fallen significantly since May 1, 2026, when China extended zero-tariff treatment to all 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic relations. From January through September, the Jinyi Comprehensive Bonded Zone imported 2.81 billion yuan worth of goods from Africa, up 253.4% year over year.
Industrial cooperation between China and Africa is evolving. Jinhua companies are moving beyond conventional trade in goods to take a more active role in Africa’s industrialization. “Economic and trade cooperation between Jinhua and Africa continues to deepen, expanding from an initial focus on trade in goods into green industries, digital economy, agricultural technology and industrial park development,” said Jiang Zhenlei, president of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade Jinhua Sub-Council.
Agricultural technology from Jinhua is opening up new possibilities for farming in Africa. “Africa has vast stretches of land and enormous demand for agricultural machinery,” said Mao Keqiang, president of the Machinery and Equipment Chamber of Commerce at China Commodity City. Jinhua is also expanding international cooperation through the China-Africa (Jinhua) Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Park and the China-Mozambique “Belt and Road” Joint Laboratory on Smart Agriculture. These efforts include supplying machinery suited to local conditions, sharing standardized crop-growing techniques and offering regular agricultural training to develop a cohort of 100 African agricultural specialists.
According to available figures, about 30,000 businesspeople from Jinhua are engaged in long-term trade and business operations in Africa. Jinhua is also home to 2,675 African-invested enterprises, the most of any city in Zhejiang. On Shangcheng Avenue in Yiwu, the China-Africa Building houses 120 companies, including 90 African businesses.
Alongside their growing trade ties, Jinhua and Africa are strengthening cooperation in education and culture. Local institutions, including Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua University of Vocational Technology and Yiwu Industrial & Commercial College, have provided opportunities to more than 15,000 students from over 50 African countries and regions, creating a cross-continental pathway for education and skills development.
Yiwu Industrial & Commercial College, for example, has enrolled 1,190 international students from 38 African countries since 2007. Its African graduates combine Chinese-language skills and cross-cultural understanding with practical skills and entrepreneurial abilities, helping connect China and Africa through trade and cultural exchanges.
At the recently concluded 2026 World Vocational College Skills Competition, all 10 teams jointly fielded by Jinhua University of Vocational Technology and Rwanda Polytechnic’s Musanze College won awards. Their success highlights the results of joint training under the “Future of Africa” China-Africa Vocational Education Cooperation Plan.
As these graduates move between the two regions and establish themselves professionally, they are strengthening not only trade ties but also cultural connections. The year 2026 marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and African countries and has been designated the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges. Jinhua is exploring new approaches to such exchanges with Africa through signature events, international communications and cooperation in culture and tourism.
From October 7 to 15, performers from Zhejiang Wuju Opera Art Research Institute and its Wuyi branch, the Wuyi County Wuju Opera Art Heritage Center, toured Lesotho and Zimbabwe. Their four performances in the two countries drew repeated applause. To date, the Zhejiang Wuju Opera Art Research Institute has toured 17 African countries, giving 52 performances to a combined audience of more than 2 million.
Film and television cooperation is becoming another important part of Jinhua’s cultural exchanges with Africa. The 2026 China-Africa Film and Television Cooperation Event opened in Hengdian on October 23, with a theme of “Mutual learning between cultures, closer ties in film and television, and cooperation for shared benefits”. Drawing on Jinhua’s well-established film and television industry and Zhejiang Normal University’s expertise in African studies, the event provided a forum for in-depth dialogue, promoting cultural learning, the exchange of complementary technologies, joint industry development for shared benefit and stronger ties between people. Since 2018, Jinhua has organized more than 60 China-Africa cultural exchange and cooperation events, reaching over 40 African countries and more than 100 million people across the continent.
From facilitating trade and supporting industrial development to training skilled workers and fostering cultural understanding, Jinhua is taking practical steps to broaden and deepen its cooperation with Africa. The commitment on both sides is creating tangible opportunities for development while contributing to an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era.
