China has become one of the most popular countries for African students seeking to study abroad.
中国已成为最受想要出国留学的非洲学生欢迎的目的国之一。
In less than 15 years, the African student body has grown 26-fold - from just under 2,000 in 2003 to almost 50,000 in 2015.
在不到15年的时间里，在华非洲学生的人数增加了26倍，从2003年的不到2000人增至2015年的近5万人。
According to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the US and UK host around 40,000 African students a year.
根据联合国教科文组织统计研究所的数据，美国和英国每年接待约4万名非洲学生。
China surpassed this number in 2014, making it the second most popular destination for African students studying abroad, after France, which hosts just over 95,000.
2014年，中国超过了这个数字，成为仅次于法国的非洲学生留学的第二大热门目的地。法国的非洲留学生人数略高于9.5万人。

In recent years, the Chinese government has been keen to support human resource and education development, especially in African countries, and this is seen as one of the main reasons for the increasing number of African students attending Chinese universities.
近年来，中国政府热心支持人力资源和教育发展，尤其是非洲国家的人力资源和教育发展，这被认为是就读中国大学的非洲学生人数增加的主要原因之一。
For the Chinese government, providing education to Africans is an extension of China's soft power.
对中国政府来说，向非洲人提供教育是中国软实力的延伸。
It's hoped the experience of these African students in China will translate into a willingness to cooperate with the country, and it also will have a positive effect on China's future internal and external policies.
这些非洲学生在中国的经历，有望转化为与中国合作的意愿，对中国未来的内外政策也将有积极作用。