DAKAR, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Senegal will continue to facilitate the "convergence of views" between China and Africa on key issues such as global governance, poverty reduction and the fight against COVID-19, said Senegal's Foreign Minister Aissata Tall Sall.

In an article published Wednesday on local newspaper Le Quotidien, the top diplomat commended "the long journey made by Africa and China" through the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, leading today to "a perfect convergence of views and interests" within the framework of the global strategic partnership.

She said that between China and Africa, there is "a long tradition of friendship, exchanges, and cooperation based on a solid foundation of values and principles that defies all the divisions inherent in the vicissitudes of time and the international environment."

"Today, China contributes to Africa's economic and social development through important economic, technical, scientific, and socio-cultural achievements. It has built thousands of kilometers of roads, railways, airports, stadiums, universities, schools, hospitals across the African continent," the minister said.

Sall said that in 20 years, Sino-African trade has multiplied by 20, from 10 billion U.S. dollars in 2000 to 208.7 billion U.S. dollars in 2019.

China has been Africa's top trading partner for 11 years, and is also a leading partner of the African Union in the bloc's implementation of Agenda 2063 and the African Peace and Security Architecture, Sall noted.

"What has become the strength of the China-Africa partnership is its pragmatism, that is, its ability to intervene at the right time to provide concrete answers from the concerned parties," Sall said.

"This has been reconfirmed recently when, in the face of the health crisis caused by coronavirus, China and Africa supported each other and fought together against the disease," Sall added.