Wang Yi, the minister of foreign affairs, is expected to begin a five-country visit to Africa on Saturday to deepen trade ties and likely discuss the upcoming Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Wang will begin his trip in Kenya before traveling to Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan. He wraps up his visit on Jan 17.

Since 1991, China has annually sent its minister of foreign affairs to Africa immediately after the new year, which experts say shows the importance that the nation attaches to its relationship with the continent.

Wang was named to his current post in March 2013. In his visit to Africa after the 2014 new year, he visited Ethiopia, Djibouti, Ghana and Senegal.

China is looking to strengthen its bilateral relations with Kenya on this upcoming trip following Premier Li Keqiang's trip to the East African country in May.

Yang Lihua, an African analyst at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, says "African countries firmly support China, especially after the nation's reform and opening-up in the late 1970s. Though they are partners in politics, China and Africa have also supported each other in economy and trade."

Yang says the upcoming Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in South Africa will possibly be discussed during Wang's visit.

Liu Naiya, another expert on African studies at the academy, says that the upcoming visit shows "China thinks highly of the bilateral relationship between China and Africa".

In addition to making trade deals, Wang will likely discuss possible cooperation on agriculture, says Liu. The expert notes that China's relationship with Africa reached a new era of cooperation last year.

Shortly after the 2014 new year, China reopened its embassy in Somalia and also sent peacekeepers to Mali.

During the premier's visit to Africa in May, he laid out a plan of cooperation that covered six key areas, industries, finance, poverty reduction, ecological and environmental protection, cultural and people-to-people exchanges, and peace and security.

The plan makes good on President Xi Jinping's promise to Africa in 2013 to expand ties, Liu says.

China has been the biggest trade partner for Africa from 2009 to 2013, with trade reaching $210.2 billion in 2013. Standard Chartered Bank projected that China-Africa trade will reach $280 billion this year.

Speaking at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa on May 5, 2014, Li noted the rapid growth in bilateral trade in recent years and urged both sides to raise the volume to $400 billion by 2020. He also proposed a target of $100 billion for China's cumulative direct investment in Africa.

Li also pledged to increase China's loans for African countries by $10 billion to brings the total pledged to $30 billion, and to expand the China-Africa Development Fund by $2 billion to a total of $5 billion.

To help Africa reduce its overall poverty, China will train 2,000 agricultural technicians in Africa over the next five years. It will also prioritize public-welfare needs such as drinking water and the prevention and control of epidemics, the premier said in May.

But there are numerous challenges in the development of China's economic relationship with Africa.

"The biggest challenge for the two is the lack of understanding of each other on nongovernmental levels," says Liu, who adds that the lack of understanding of Africa in China may lead to misunderstandings.

"The two should pay more attention to nongovernment cultural exchanges. While China brings its culture to Africa, it should also give more chances for African countries to show their cultural sides to China."

China will continue to increase its aid to Africa and boost cooperation with African countries in a number of sectors such as agriculture, education, clean energy, environmental protection, hydropower and solar power, according to the ministry.

China has been offering aid to the continent since 1956. By the end of 2012, China had offered aid to 53 African countries, assisting 1,000 agricultural, infrastructure construction, housing, education and healthcare projects, according to the Ministry of Commerce. More than 350,000 technical personnel have been sent to Africa while China has trained 53,700 people from Africa in various skills. The ministry says China has sent medical teams to 42 African countries.

houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn and lucymorangi@chinadaily.com.cn