ACJA Meets African, South Asian and Southeast Asian Journalists

On April 25, 2017, Wang Dongmei (王冬梅), secretary of the All-China Journalists Association (中國記協), met with 42 journalists from 39 countries across Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia in Beijing. Wang emphasized China’s growing economic and media ties with these regions, claiming the journalists’ association follows principles of “openness, cooperation, and mutual benefit” (開放、合作、共贏) while promoting Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative (一帶一路). The foreign journalists were invited by the China-Africa Press Exchange Center (中非新聞交流中心) and China-South Asia Southeast Asia Exchange Center (中國-南亞東南亞交流中心), which were established in 2014 and 2016 respectively under China’s Forum on China-Africa Cooperation framework. These centers arrange 10-month programs for international journalists featuring themed reporting and cultural experiences, with the China-Africa Press Exchange Center placing “African journalists in Chinese media outlets on 10-month assignments where they work in Chinese news rooms and report on high-level CCP activities.”