The first African Press Officials Seminar held by the Information Office of China's State Council for African press officials opened in Beijing Saturday.

Press officials from 17 African countries will participate in the two-week seminar. They will exchange views with Chinese journalists and learn more about China's achievements.

This seminar is the first of its kind and a result of the cooperation between the governments of China and African countries.

Besides Beijing, the participants will travel to Shanghai, Chongqing Municipalities and Suzhou, a city of east China's Jiangsu Province.

One-hundred seminar participants, African diplomats to China, Chinese officials and media representatives attended a evening reception sponsored by the Information Office of State Council for the opening of the seminar.

(Xinhua News Agency August 15, 2004)