China’s Wang to visit South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Turkey

China’s top diplomat Wang Yi will visit South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Turkey in the coming days, Beijing’s foreign ministry announced on Wednesday.

“Wang Yi will attend the 13th BRICS high representatives’ meeting on security affairs in Johannesburg from July 24 to 25, and visit Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and Turkey before and after the meeting,” the ministry said in a statement.

South Africa is the current chair of the BRICS, a grouping of heavyweights that also includes Brazil, Russia, India and China to challenge the dominant US and European-led global governance structures.

A summit of the bloc’s leaders will take place next month.

Wang’s visit to Africa comes as Beijing seeks to bolster its presence on the continent.

Incumbent Foreign Minister Qin Gang visited Africa last year on his first overseas visit in the job.

During that visit, Qin rallied countries to work together “to make the global governance system more just and equitable”.

“Africa should be a platform for international cooperation, not an arena for competition between major countries,” he said.