China ‘Two sessions’ and the opportunity for Africa

With China as the second largest economy in the world, with a contribution of about 30% to global growth and 70% in global poverty reduction, how China is governed is naturally of interest beyond her border.

In the past 36 years, Beijing’s most conspicuous foreign relations act at the start of every year is the foreign minister’s visit to Africa. The “two sessions” is China’s most consequential annual event in her political calendar and it happens right after Beijing outreach to Africa at the start of every year. Beyond optics, it signifies shared vision on a range of issues that includes, trade and investment, industrial and production capacity cooperation, peace and security and of the larger question of global governance reforms etc.

As Africa’s largest trading partner for the past 17 consecutive years with bilateral trade reaching a record high of $348 billion in 2025, representing about 17.7% increase from 2024, exports from Africa to China grew by 5.4% to $123billion. The prospects to further narrowing the gap of the trade balance remain very high. China from the month of May after the conclusion of the “two sessions” would put into full effect, the mechanism for zero-tariff entry of high quality products from the 53 countries except Estwani to the Chinese market.

The major agenda of this year’s “two sessions” would be the approval of China’s 15th five year development plan. The plan aims to consolidate China’s unified national market, presenting the world with the opportunity of an unprecedented big single market. The high quality opening of the Chinese market would be complimented by a deliberate policy to foster domestic consumption by substantially boosting incomes.

China’s top legislative branch, the National People’s Congress and its high advisory counterpart, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, have their work meaningfully cut out: to examine the details and relate it to the big picture of the country’s overall economic roadmaps in the next five years, with periodic oversight of its implementation trajectories. The political advantage of consultative and inclusive process as the key operating mechanism of China political life is that it brings out the best of the country’s manpower endowments, ensuring that no insight or perspective is left out in forging critical consensus on governance and development.

The “two sessions” which are the critical and essential mechanism for the structural framework of consultations is a tribute to the country’s institutional monument for forging national consensus and translating it to governance efficiency and the practical outcomes of expanding prosperity for the broad range of the Chinese people.

At the session of the National People’s Congress (NPC), on March 5, Premier Li Qiang delivered the 2026 government work report on behalf of the State Council. Among the vast range of economic and development tasks outlined in the report, include 2026 GDP growth target and the follow-ups to achieve its economic goals. He projected the GDP target at 4.5%-5% and vowed that policy makers will “strive for better outcomes in actual implementation”. This might be interpreted in some quarters as lowering of ambition. It actually reflects a more calibrated, strategic approach to macro-economic management. First it reflects China’s realistic acknowledgement of some uncertain headwinds instead of concealing them. With a trade rift with the United States still ongoing and Washington’s unpredictable disposition and general uncertainty of external demand, fixing a single-digit risks sending the wrong signal if conditions deteriorate. Therefore a multiple range preserves policy flexibility that guarantees stability and predictability. More importantly, the range reflects movement from speed to prioritizing high quality development, a measure that would give effect to the new quality productive forces.

In a world of growing uncertainty, China offers stability and a roadmap to shared prosperity beyond her borders. From the workshop of the world and to humanity’s most stable market the country, through a range of policy measures, gives practical effect as a major global opportunity.

China’s economic roadmap in the implementation of 15th five year plan provides a wide range of opportunity for Africa, especially the concessional market access which if properly utilized by the African countries, could support the long standing policy priorities of structural transformation that enables wide range of diversification of products and export range. With a surge in the incomes of Chinese households and Chinese government effort to structurally calibrate domestic consumption as a major economic driver, Africa’s high quality products would be able to find a niche in the world’s largest single market, with implications for accelerating industrialization in Africa.

Africa is more properly disposed as the next industrial frontier and workshop of the world. But none of these would have happened on its own. Just as China has through policy measures overtime, calibrated  her evolving economic trajectories with results that continuously elevate her, it is only in such respect of a deliberate choice actuated by relevant policy instruments that Africa can fulfil her destiny in the current objective international outlook of economic opportunities.

China’s opportunity stands out as an important bridgehead for Africa’s economic cross over to a sustainable growth and inclusive development and issues around these prospects would be clarified at the “two sessions” China top legislative and advisory bodies. And this the reason why Africa should show more than casual interests of a major event in China’s national political calendar.

•Onunaiju contributes the commentary from Abuja.