Tuesday August 22, 2023
President Xi Jinping (R) is attending the Brics summit in South Africa
Chinese President Xi Jinping is in South Africa for his first visit to Africa in five years - part of which he'll be attending the Brics summit of major emerging economies.
The Brics summit - which gathers Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - is looking at whether to make the grouping even bigger by admitting new members.
The Chinese president, who is also paying a state visit, arrived in Johannesburg on Monday night and was welcomed by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Later on Tuesday, Mr Xi will co-chair the China-Africa Leaders’ Dialogue with Mr Ramaphosa on the side-lines of the summit.
Several African countries have previously expressed interest in joining Brics, including Algeria, Egypt and Ethiopia.
A total of 69 countries have been invited to the summit, including all African states.