Xi pledges $51bn in new financing for African countries at Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has pledged to create “at least” one million jobs in Africa as he seeks to position Beijing as the development partner of choice for the Global South.

Speaking at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation on Thursday, Xi said Beijing would provide African countries $51bn in new financing, including loans and “various types of assistance”, and support 30 infrastructure projects to boost connectivity across the continent.

“We have together built roads, railways, schools, hospitals, industrial parks and special economic zones. These projects have changed the lives and destiny of many people,” Xi told visiting African leaders in Beijing, according to the state-run Xinhua News Agency.

Xi said that the Chinese and African people working together could “accomplish new and even greater feats” and spearhead the “modernisation” of the Global South.

Xi’s comments come as Beijing is seeking to expand its influence in Africa amid a growing economic and diplomatic divergence with Western countries, including the United States.

Beijing’s outreach also comes as the world’s second-largest economy is slowing down amid challenges that include a prolonged property crisis and a declining population.

China is Africa’s biggest trade partner, with nearly one-quarter of the continent’s exports – mainly minerals, fuels and metals – going to the Asian superpower.

Beijing is also the continent’s biggest lender, pledging $191bn to African countries between 2006 and 2021.

In the run-up to the three-day summit, African leaders announced numerous deals related to cooperation on infrastructure, agriculture, mining and energy.

Among other agreements, Kenyan President William Ruto announced plans to cooperate on the expansion of the railway between capital Nairobi and Mombasa and a highway in the west of the East African country.