Evolution of China–Africa Cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation: A Way to Capacity Building

China–Africa relations go back to ancient times when scientific and technological exchanges already emerged, and are being greatly driven by cooperation in science, technology and innovation (STI). There are generally three stages of the evolution of China–Africa cooperation in STI: “mutual exchanges” focused cooperation from the Han Dynasty to the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC), “direct aid” focused cooperation from the founding of the PRC to the late twentieth century, and “capacity building” oriented cooperation since the beginning of the twenty-first century. In the new era, two versions of the China–Africa Science and Technology Partnership Program (CASTEP), namely, the “CASTEP 1.0” and the “CASTEP 2.0”, are implemented and advanced, targeting national capacity building to realize transformation and development, which have made certain achievements. China–Africa cooperation in STI sees new opportunities and challenges brought by profound changes unseen in a century, the evolving international political and economic landscape, and the ongoing new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation. In response to this, capacity building-oriented is still the future direction of China–Africa cooperation in STI. Both sides need to further strengthen the strategic significance of China–Africa cooperation in STI and the consensus on development, expand China–Africa cooperation in the fields of new technologies, and diversify and improve mechanisms of cooperation.