Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke highly of the "significant progress" made in African integration in a congratulatory message sent to the African Union (AU) on Sunday.

The message came as a celebration of the opening of the 32nd AU summit of heads of state and government in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa.  

In the message, President Xi pointed out that since last year, under the leadership of the AU, African countries have been accordant in reacting to important international and regional issues, and Africa's global influence has been increasing steadily. 

President Xi also called last September's Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) a great success, stressing that China is willing to work together with Africa to implement the FOCAC Beijing Summit outcomes, promoting the alignment of the joint construction of the Belt and Road with the implementation of the AU Agenda 2063, the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and various development strategies of African countries.

The Chinese president also called for the building of a closer China-Africa community with a shared future.  

(Top image: African Union's headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, November 17, 2018. /VCG Photo)