State Councilor Tang Jiaxuan told former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Monday the Chinese government attaches great importance to Africa's development, and is actively implementing the decisions of last year's China-Africa summit.

"China is ready to join hands with African countries to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields including sustainable development," the state councilor said.

He added China will continue to contribute to strengthening African countries' capability of independent development.

Annan appreciated China's important contributions to promoting the development of Africa, as well as the country's efforts in environmental protection and sustainable development.

He vowed to promote Africa-China cooperation in agriculture and other fields.

The former UN chief is here to attend an annual conference of the World Wild Fund for Nature and a worldwide forum on ecosystem protection.

(Xinhua News Agency June 5, 2007)