China will establish a Sino-African news center and sponsor African journalists to live in Beijing and report on China.

China News Service quoted Sun Baohong, deputy director-general of the Department of African Affairs of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who said Saturday that only four African media outlets have resident correspondents in Beijing now, fewer than most other continents.

Zhang Yanqiu, director of the Africa Communication Center from the Communication University of China, told the Global Times on Sunday that founding the Sino-Africa News Center was in line with China's policy of promoting understanding between China and Africa.

"Most African countries are still developing and lack funding, which limit their overseas media activity. Though China is also a developing country, it still has much to offer African countries and by doing this both sides will understand each other better," said Zhang.

Ayman ElKady, bureau chief of Egypt's Middle East News Agency's Beijing branch for the past 18 months, told the Global Times he believes the decision will promote bilateral relations.

"Western countries used to abuse Africa's resources badly, but China has shown its sincerity in cooperation, building this center to sponsor African journalists is a good example. China has been developing rapidly during past decades, and with correspondents working in China we can better observe and learn from China's experience," said ElKady.

ElKady told the Global Times  that apart from Egypt's Middle East News Agency, the South Africa TV and Morocco News Agency also have correspondents in Beijing.

"This will also help strengthen China's culture influence in Africa. Both of us have the world's oldest civilizations, but African people know little about China other than from the Western media. We'd love to know China with our own efforts rather than take second hand information from other people," said ElKady.