Li Xiaolin (C), President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), Wu Jiaqi (1st L), president of the Wenzhou Enterprises Chamber of Commerce in Beijing (WECCB) and other guests attend the launching ceremony of the first Forum on China-Africa Local Government Cooperation in Beijing, capital of China, July 24, 2012. The launching ceremony and press conference of the forum took place Tuesday in Beijing. The event, which is jointly hosted by the CPAFFC and the United Cities and Local governments of Africa (UCLGA), will be held in Beijing on August 27 and 28. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

BEIJING, July 24 (Xinhua) -- China and African countries are expected to push forward local-level cooperation at the First Forum on China-Africa Local Government Cooperation to be held in Beijing next month.

The forum, co-hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA), is scheduled for August 27-28.

Feng Zuoku, vice president of the CPAFFC, told a press conference that exchanges between Chinese and African local governments play a significant role in strengthening China-Africa relations, noting that the Fifth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) held in Beijing last week pushed China-Africa friendship and cooperation to a new height.

"Chinese local enterprises have entered Africa one after another," Feng said, adding an increasing number of Chinese provinces and cities are giving aid to Africa by sending medical teams annually and offering programs to train various types of qualified personnel on the continent.

Both sides share the aspiration that a comprehensive platform will be built to further promote practical cooperation between the local governments and enhance their exchanges and cooperation to a new level with new achievements, he said.

According to Feng, the forum will last one and a half days, consisting of a summit of local governors and an economic and trade forum. More than 1,000 people are expected to participate in the event, including representatives of NGOs.

Wenzhou Enterprises Chamber of Commerce in Beijing, a gathering of enterprisers from Wenzhou, a coastal city in Zhejiang province, will participate in the forum's organization.

The UN-HABITAT will also provide great support to the forum as co-organizator, said Feng.