The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) recently kicked off, and thousands of people living in remote areas in Cote d’Ivoire and other African countries were able to watch the matches at home thanks to broadcast services provided by StarTimes, a Chinese digital TV operator.
In 2015, a project to connect 10,000 African villages to satellite television services was proposed during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit in Johannesburg, South Africa. The project, undertaken by StarTimes, has helped 9,512 villages in 20 African countries receive digital TV signals, benefiting more than 190,000 households directly.
China has assisted African countries in the football industry for over a decade, helping construct AFCON 2012, 2017 and 2021 stadiums. This year, China helped Cote d’Ivoire build key infrastructure to facilitate the matches, including constructing four new stadiums and improving roads, hospitals and airports.
The connection between China and Africa, as exemplified in AFCON 2023, is part of broader ties nurtured by generations on both sides. Lu Lu, the manager of BCEG’s Cote d’Ivoire branch, expressed her admiration for the China-Africa friendship and the warmth of the African people toward the Chinese.
China has been sending medical personnel to African countries since 1963, focusing on providing healthcare to local communities. Over the past decades, China-Africa cooperation has yielded fruitful results, including constructing railways, highways, airports, seaports, and renewable energy power plants.
