Xi's special envoy attends opening ceremony of 4th Youth Olympic Games in Senegal

Gao Zhidan, special envoy of Chinese President Xi Jinping and director of China's General Administration of Sport, attended the opening ceremony of the fourth Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, capital of Senegal, on Saturday at the invitation of the Senegalese government.

Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye met with Gao in Dakar on Saturday morning.

Gao conveyed Xi's warm greetings and best wishes to Faye, saying that China attaches great importance to developing relations with Senegal and Africa.

China stands ready to continuously enrich the substance of the China-Senegal comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership and make full use of the Olympic Movement's unique role in promoting peace, unity and inclusiveness, Gao said. He added that China is ready to make greater contributions to jointly building an all-weather China-Africa community with a shared future for the new era.

Faye asked Gao to convey his sincere greetings to Xi and thanked the Chinese president for sending a special envoy to attend the Games.

Speaking highly of Senegal-China relations, Faye said China is one of Senegal's most important cooperation partners. He thanked President Xi and the Chinese government for their long-standing strong support for Senegal's economic and social development and its hosting of the Games.