What is China's aid to Africa?

I. Promoting balanced trade development

Trade is the initial form of China-Africa economic and trade cooperation. With the development of China-Africa relations and the increase of exchanges, the scale of China-Africa trade is expanding day by day. 1950, the bilateral trade volume between China and Africa was only12140,000 USD, 1960 reached10,000 USD, and 1980 exceeded/kloc-0,000 USD. After China-Africa trade reached tens of billions of dollars in 2000, it showed a rapid growth momentum. In 2008, it exceeded US$ 6,543.8 billion, of which China exported US$ 50.8 billion to Africa and imported US$ 56 billion from Africa. From 2000 to 2008, the average annual growth rate of China-Africa trade was as high as 33.5%, and its share in China's total foreign trade rose from 2.2% to 4.2%, and its share in Africa's total foreign trade rose from 3.8% to 10.4%. In 2009, despite the impact of the international financial crisis, China-Africa trade volume dropped to 910.7 billion US dollars, but China became Africa's largest trading partner for the first time that year. With the recovery of the world economy, China-Africa trade has shown a good recovery and development trend. From June 20 10 to June 201/year, the trade volume between China and Africa reached 1 148 1 billion US dollars, with a year-on-year increase of 43.5%.

At the same time of scale expansion, the trade structure between China and Africa has been gradually optimized, and products with comparative advantages from both sides have successively entered each other's markets. From 1980s to 1990s, China's exports to Africa were mainly light industry, food, chemicals and native products. Since 2000, the export of mechanical and electrical products, such as machinery and equipment, automobiles and electronic products, has increased substantially, and the quality and technical content of goods have been greatly improved. At present, the proportion of mechanical and electrical products in China's exports to Africa has exceeded 50%. As far as African exports to China are concerned, cotton, phosphate and other primary products were once the main commodities. In recent years, African manufactured products such as steel, copper, fertilizer and electronic products have entered the China market one after another. At the same time, the export growth of African agricultural products to China has accelerated. Egyptian citrus, South African wine, Ghana cocoa beans, Ugandan coffee, Tunisia olive oil, Ethiopian sesame and other specialty products are gradually familiar and loved by China consumers. Affected by the international financial crisis, China's imports from Africa declined in 2009, but its imports of agricultural products increased by 25%.

Over the years, China has followed the principle of mutual benefit and win-win, promoted trade facilitation and promoted the comprehensive, comprehensive and balanced development of China-Africa trade. China has signed bilateral trade agreements with 45 African countries, strengthened cooperation in customs, taxation, inspection and quarantine, and created favorable conditions for the development of China-Africa trade. In order to support African countries to expand their exports to China, since 2005, China has granted zero tariff treatment to some African least developed countries that have established diplomatic relations with China. By July of 20 10, the beneficiary commodities have expanded to more than 4,700 tax items, and will gradually cover 95% of all tax items in People's Republic of China (PRC) Import and Export Tariff. Driven by the zero tariff policy, the export of African beneficiary commodities to China has grown rapidly. From 2005 to the end of June 20 10, China imported13.2 billion US dollars of African commodities, including agricultural products, leather, stone, textiles and clothing, mechanical parts, base metals and wood products. China also helps African enterprises to explore the China market by holding African commodity exhibitions, setting up African product exhibition centers, and providing preferential and convenient measures such as booth fee reduction and exemption.

At present, both China and Africa are in the process of industrialization and urbanization, with strong market demand and huge trade potential between China and Africa. As far as China is concerned, the export of African crude oil, minerals, steel products and agricultural products to China has played a positive role in promoting China's economic development and improving people's living standards. As far as Africa is concerned, China's products and technologies meet the needs of Africa's development, and China's huge market also provides broad space for African products. In particular, China's sustained and rapid economic development has provided a stable export market for African resource products. At the same time, good quality and cheap goods from China can help improve the living standards of African people and help some African countries control and alleviate inflation.

Second, expand the field of mutual investment.

China's investment in African countries began in 1980s, and its initial scale was generally small. After entering the 1990s, the scale of China's investment in Africa has gradually expanded, the fields have been continuously broadened, and the ways have become increasingly diverse. Since 2000, with the promotion of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China's investment in Africa has grown rapidly, gradually forming a diversified investment pattern. At the same time, African investment in China has become increasingly active, and a number of African enterprises have grown in the China market.

In recent years, China's investment in Africa has shown new characteristics. First, rapid growth. At the end of 2003, the stock of China's direct investment in Africa was US$ 490 million, and by the end of 2009, the stock of China's direct investment in Africa had greatly increased to US$ 9.33 billion. Second, it is widely distributed. China's investment in Africa is distributed in 49 African countries, mainly in South Africa, Nigeria, Zambia, Sudan, Algeria, Egypt and other countries. Third, the field is rich. Mainly involved in mining, finance, manufacturing, construction, tourism, agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery. Fourth, there are various ways. In addition to sole proprietorship and joint venture, the ways of share participation, merger and acquisition, and joint venture with third-country enterprises to develop resources are gradually increasing. Fifth, the main body is diverse. Large and medium-sized state-owned enterprises, private enterprises and self-employed individuals all invest in Africa, each with its own strengths and mutual benefit.

The China Municipal Government encourages and supports China enterprises with strength and good reputation to expand their investment in Africa, and takes measures to guide them, which has played an obvious leading role. First, create a good investment environment by signing agreements and other means. Up to now, China has signed bilateral investment promotion and protection agreements with 33 African countries, and double taxation avoidance agreements with 1 1 African countries, creating conditions for cooperation between Chinese and African enterprises. The second is the establishment of china-africa development fund. This fund is an equity fund established by financial institutions in China to support domestic enterprises to invest in Africa. Since its establishment three years ago, it has decided to invest in more than 30 projects, involving agricultural development, machinery manufacturing, electricity, building materials, industrial parks, mining, port logistics and other fields. At present, the first-phase quota has been arranged at 654.38 billion US dollars, which will be gradually expanded to 5 billion US dollars. The third is to promote the construction of overseas economic and trade cooperation zones. With the support of the two governments, China enterprises will develop the infrastructure of the cooperation zone, and will be responsible for attracting investment, attracting Chinese and foreign enterprises to settle in and gradually forming industrial clusters. At present, China is building six economic and trade cooperation zones in Zambian, Mauritian, Nigerian, Egyptian, Ethiopian and other African countries, and has invested US$ 250 million in the park infrastructure construction. Zambia-China Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone is the first overseas economic and trade cooperation zone established by China in Africa. At present, 0/3 enterprises have been introduced, covering mining, exploration, non-ferrous metal processing, chemical industry, construction and other fields, with an actual investment of 600 million US dollars, providing more than 6,000 local jobs.

African countries are rich in resources, and development cooperation in the field of resources is an important part of China-Africa investment cooperation. In recent years, based on the principle of mutual benefit and common development, some enterprises in China have actively participated in the development of resources in Africa, helped African countries to develop resource processing industries, improved the added value of resources, and turned their resource advantages into the driving force for social and economic development. In cooperation, China enterprises strictly abide by international rules and adopt open, transparent and diverse forms of cooperation to jointly develop and utilize resources with African countries and international enterprises. China enterprises' investment in this field has broadened the sources of funds for Africa's development, enhanced the value of resources, and promoted local infrastructure construction and economic development, which has been widely welcomed by local governments and people. For example, enterprises from China, Malaysia and other countries cooperated with Sudan to develop oil resources, which helped Sudan establish a modern oil industry system with upstream and downstream integration, greatly increased Sudan's fiscal revenue and played an important role in improving people's lives.

In the course of business operation, African enterprises in China should pay attention to the relationship with local people, insist on operating according to law, be honest and trustworthy, strengthen resource conservation and environmental protection, implement "localized" operation, employ a large number of local employees, actively enhance the independent development ability of the host country, and make contributions to local economic development while accelerating their own development. For example, China's mining enterprises in Zambia not only invested in the construction of smelters to improve the utilization efficiency of local copper resources, but also promised not to reduce production by one ton, lay off one person or invest in one company after the international financial crisis, becoming the only one of the seven foreign-funded mining enterprises in the country not to reduce production or lay off employees.

In recent years, with the development of African economy and the expansion of China's market potential, African enterprises are increasingly active in investing in China. Among them, Mauritius, South Africa, Seychelles, Nigeria and Tunisia are the main African countries investing in China. South African companies set up joint venture beer enterprises in China, and * * * operates nearly 70 breweries. The chemical fertilizer enterprise jointly established by Tunisia and China enterprises in China has become one of the large-scale compound fertilizer production bases in China. By the end of 2009, African countries had invested a total of 9.93 billion US dollars in China, involving petrochemical industry, machinery and electronics, transportation and communication, light household appliances, clothing and textiles, biopharmaceuticals, agricultural development, entertainment and catering, real estate and other fields. Africa's investment in China reflects the complementary advantages, which also drives China's commodity exports to Africa and other regions.

Third, pay attention to infrastructure construction.

Backward infrastructure is a bottleneck restricting the development of many African countries, and infrastructure construction is one of the key areas of China-Africa economic and trade cooperation. China attaches great importance to supporting African countries to improve infrastructure conditions and helping them to build infrastructure such as houses, roads, bridges, railways, airports, ports, communications, electricity, water supply and drainage, hospitals, etc. Through aid, project contracting, investment cooperation and expanding financing, it has a positive impact on Africa's development. China encourages and supports China enterprises to participate in infrastructure construction in African countries, and requires enterprises to honor contracts, keep promises and complete project construction with good quality and quantity.

Over the years, China has helped African countries to build a large number of infrastructure projects. In the 1970s, when the domestic economy was still very difficult, China built the Tanzania-Zambia Railway with a length of 1860 kilometers, which became a historical witness of China's selfless assistance to Africa. The Cairo International Conference Center aided by China has a total construction area of 58,000 square meters, and holds hundreds of international conferences and exhibitions every year, which promotes the development of local commerce and tourism. By the end of 2009, China had built more than 500 infrastructure projects in Africa, with large-scale projects including Wimblau Highway in Bailet Province, Friendship Port in Mauritania, maigre de Benjo Canal in Tunisia and Tanzanian National Stadium. A number of projects such as the African Union Conference Center are receiving assistance.

In order to support African countries to improve their infrastructure conditions, the Government of China has provided a large number of preferential loans to support China financial institutions to expand the scale of non-commercial loans. Especially since the establishment of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China has continuously increased its financial assistance to Africa. From 2007 to 2009, China provided $5 billion in preferential loans and preferential export buyer's credit to Africa. From 20 10 to 20 12, China plans to provide Africa with preferential loans of 10 billion US dollars. Large-scale projects under construction supported by preferential loans include Mauritius Airport, Malabo Mansion in Equatorial Guinea and Buwei Hydropower Station in Ghana.

According to international rules, China's engineering enterprises have built a lot of infrastructure in Africa with good quality, low cost and urgent need by bidding for construction projects in Africa. From houses and roads to airports, refineries, telecommunications networks and hydropower stations, the technical content of the project has been continuously improved and the scale has been continuously expanded; From bidding by a single enterprise to bidding by establishing an international enterprise consortium, China enterprises have demonstrated their strength in Africa, accumulated experience, trained talents and improved their international operation ability. Large-scale projects undertaken by enterprises in China include Sheraton Algerian Hotel, Ethiopian National Telecommunication Network and Lowe Dam in Denmark, Jiangsu, etc. Large-scale projects under construction include affordable housing in Angola, coastal railway in Libya and light rail in Lagos, Nigeria.

Enterprises in China take the initiative to assume social responsibilities and actively engage in public welfare undertakings that benefit the local people, which has won full affirmation and positive evaluation from the host government and the public. China enterprises donated money to build roads, bridges, wells, hospitals and schools in African countries, and also donated materials to make positive contributions to the development of local communities. For example, China's public welfare undertakings in Sudan have benefited more than 2 million people. The Sino-Nigerian Friendship Primary School donated in Nigeria has eased the pressure of basic education in 300 local villages, and a large number of students have been trained in vocational training centers built in Angola, Libya and other countries.

Four. Strengthen development capacity building

Development is the most urgent problem facing Africa, and the lack of technology and talents is an important factor restricting Africa's development. The Government of China attaches great importance to the development capacity building in Africa, and strives to help African countries improve their hematopoietic function by cooperating with African countries in human resources development and sending foreign aid experts and young volunteers to Africa.

Strengthen educational exchanges and cooperation. China and Africa have carried out fruitful educational cooperation and trained a large number of talents for Africa. By the end of 2009, China had built 107 schools in Africa and provided government scholarships to 29,465 African students. At present, the Government of China provides about 5,000 scholarships to African countries every year. China has also strengthened cooperation with African countries in higher education, vocational education and distance education, and established specialized laboratories in Africa, such as biology, computer, analytical chemistry, food preservation and processing, horticulture and civil engineering.

Conduct management and technical training. China helps Africa to cultivate management and technical talents in various ways. As of June 20 10, China has trained more than 30,000 personnel for African countries, covering more than 20 fields such as economy, public management, agriculture, animal husbandry and fishery, medical and health care, science and technology, and environmental protection. In addition, China has also trained a large number of skilled technicians for non-enterprises by establishing training centers, on-the-job training and sending outstanding employees to China for training.

Conduct practical technical training. China has carried out practical technical training in planting, aquaculture, fisheries, textiles, embroidery and leather processing in many African countries. For example, China held many training courses on bamboo and rattan weaving technology for Liberian refugees, dropouts and poor farmers after the war, which promoted the development of local bamboo and rattan industry. By selling self-made products, the monthly income of the trainees in the bamboo and rattan weaving training class can reach $65,438+050, effectively improving their living conditions.

Send foreign aid experts and young volunteers. By the end of 2009, China had sent 104 senior agricultural technical experts to 33 African countries to help them make agricultural development plans and carry out agricultural technical guidance and training. Send experts to guide the production and operation of aid-aided projects in China, train local managers, and help African countries master the ability to manage projects independently. China has also cooperated with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and signed tripartite agreements on South-South cooperation with Mauritania, Ghana, Ethiopia, Gabon, Sierra Leone, Mali and Nigeria, and sent more than 600 China agricultural experts and technicians to these countries. By the end of 2009, China had sent 365,438+02 young volunteers to Africa to provide voluntary services in the fields of Chinese language teaching, health care, sports, computer training and international rescue.

Verb (abbreviation for verb) helps improve people's livelihood.

Perfecting public facilities, solving the food problem, improving sanitary conditions and reducing the foreign debt burden are important livelihood issues related to Africa's realization of the UN Millennium Development Goals. China attaches great importance to the development of people's livelihood in Africa, helps African countries to build public welfare facilities, improve agricultural level and medical and health conditions, and actively carries out debt reduction, disaster relief and humanitarian assistance to Africa.

Actively build public welfare facilities. China has built a large number of public welfare projects for African countries, such as low-rent housing, water supply by drilling wells, sewage treatment, radio and television, and communication facilities, which have played a positive role in improving the living standards of local people. For example, low-cost housing projects in Seychelles, Mozambique, Angola and Ethiopia have improved the living conditions of local people; Drilling projects in Nigeria, Senegal and Equatorial Guinea, water supply system in Chalins, Tanzania, and water supply project in zinder, Niger, etc. , solved the problem of domestic water for local residents; Equatorial Guinea National Television Center meets the needs of local TV signal transmission and coverage.

Carry out various forms of agricultural cooperation. Food security is related to the stable development and poverty reduction in Africa. Agriculture is the pillar industry of most African countries and the priority area of China-Africa economic and trade cooperation. China has always regarded helping Africa solve the food security problem as the fundamental purpose of China-Africa agricultural cooperation. The main areas of agricultural cooperation between China and Africa include agricultural infrastructure construction, grain production, aquaculture, exchange and transfer of agricultural practical technology, processing of agricultural products, storage and transportation, etc. By the end of 2009, China * * * had built 142 agricultural projects such as agricultural technology test stations, extension stations and farms for Africa, started 14 agricultural technology demonstration center projects, and provided a large number of agricultural materials and equipment to African countries. The government of China also encourages China enterprises to invest in agricultural products processing and agricultural development projects in Africa.

Improve medical and health conditions in Africa. Building hospitals, sending medical teams and providing medicines and medical materials are the main measures taken by China to help African countries improve medical and health conditions. By the end of 2009, China had built 54 hospitals in Africa, established 30 malaria control centers, and provided antimalarial drugs worth about 200 million yuan to 35 African countries. Since 1963, China has continuously sent medical teams to Africa, * * * sent 18000 foreign aid medical team members to 46 African countries, treated more than 200 million patients and trained tens of thousands of medical technicians for Africa. China medical team not only diagnosed and treated common diseases and frequently-occurring diseases, but also created conditions to carry out difficult operations such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases treatment, replantation of severed limbs and resection of huge tumors, which saved many dying patients and filled many medical gaps in recipient countries. At present, more than 65,438+0,000 China medical team members provide medical services in 465,438+0 African countries.

Reduce Africa's debt burden. The Government of China has always supported the debt reduction efforts of African countries and helped them reduce their debt burden on China. From 2000 to 2009, China cancelled 3 12 debts of 35 African countries, totaling 654.38+0.896 billion yuan. The above-mentioned debt reduction measures reflect China's desire and determination to help Africa achieve development, and also promote the international community's debt reduction process for Africa.

Carry out disaster reduction and relief and humanitarian assistance. China and Africa actively carry out personnel exchanges, technical cooperation and experience sharing in the field of disaster reduction and relief. When African countries suffered from natural disasters and wars, China insisted on providing them with humanitarian assistance in time. With the improvement of national strength, China's humanitarian assistance to Africa is increasing. In 2003, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 struck Algeria, and China quickly provided emergency relief materials and sent international rescue teams, with a total relief assistance of 5.36 million US dollars. In 2004, China officially established an emergency mechanism for humanitarian emergency relief assistance, which made the aid action faster and more effective. In recent years, China has provided emergency supplies such as food and tents to Sudan, Madagascar, Burundi, Tanzania, Somalia, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Zimbabwe and other countries, helping them to enhance their resilience and rebuild after disasters. Since 2004, China has provided Sudan with nearly 654.38+0.5 billion yuan of free aid, which is used to provide humanitarian supplies and to drill wells to implement water supply projects in Darfur.

Intransitive verbs broaden the field of China-Africa cooperation

In recent years, China-Africa cooperation has been expanding day by day, and finance, tourism, aviation and environmental protection have gradually become new areas and highlights of China-Africa cooperation. China and Africa also support each other within a multilateral framework and strengthen cooperation in tackling global issues such as climate change.

Expand financial cooperation. China government supports Chinese and African financial institutions to strengthen exchanges and cooperation and provide comprehensive financial services for enterprises of both sides. China National Development Bank, The Export-Import Bank of China, China Industrial and Commercial Bank, China Bank and China Construction Bank are located all over the African continent, providing services such as international settlement, trade and financing. The financing fields involve manufacturing, energy, communication, electricity, water supply, transportation, agriculture, logistics and other industries. China financial institutions have set up branches or representative offices in Zambia, South Africa and Egypt. China has joined the African Development Bank and the West African Development Bank, and supported the cause of poverty reduction and development in Africa through donations, debt reduction and the establishment of bilateral technical cooperation funds. Financial institutions in African countries are also actively expanding their business in China. By the end of 2009, six banks from five African countries, including Egypt, Morocco, Cameroon, South Africa and Nigeria, had set up branches or representative offices in China.

Promote tourism cooperation. Tourism is one of the emerging industries concerned by African countries, and it is also becoming a new growth point of China-Africa service trade. China actively promotes tourism cooperation with African countries. In 2002, Egypt became the first destination for Chinese mainland citizens to travel abroad in Africa. By the end of 2009, 28 countries and regions in Africa had become destinations for Chinese mainland citizens to travel abroad. In 2009, Chinese mainland citizens traveled to Africa for 38 1 10,000 person-times, up by18.5% year-on-year; The number of African tourists visiting China was 40 1 1,000, a year-on-year increase of 6%. China enterprises have also set up travel agencies and restaurants in Africa to participate in hotel construction and management.

Strengthen air transport cooperation. China encourages aviation enterprises of both sides to establish more cooperative relations and open more direct flights connecting China and Africa to facilitate personnel exchanges and cargo transportation between the two sides. By the end of 2009, China had formally signed air service agreements with Ethiopia, Angola, Zambia, South Africa and other countries 15, and initialled air service agreements with six countries including Seychelles, Libya and Uganda. At present, airlines from Egypt, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Algeria have opened direct flights to Beijing and Guangzhou. China Airlines opened direct flights from Beijing to Lagos, Luanda and Khartoum. In addition, China's aviation authorities actively carry out aid cooperation with Africa through ICAO and other channels, and promise to donate 654.38+million US dollars to ICAO's "Africa Aviation Safety Integrated Regional Implementation Plan" every year from 2008 to 201kloc-0/to help Africa improve its civil aviation safety level.

Carry out environmental cooperation. Environmental protection and coping with climate change are common problems facing the whole world. Under the framework of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, China and African countries jointly held the China-Africa Environmental Cooperation Conference, implemented the China-Africa Human Resources and Environment Training Project, and established the Central Africa Environment Center of the United Nations Environment Programme. The Government of China initiated the establishment of China-Africa climate change partnership and strengthened cooperation in the fields of satellite meteorological monitoring, new energy development and utilization, desertification control and urban environmental protection. China has an in-depth exchange of views with African countries on international negotiations on climate change to safeguard the common interests of developing countries. China supports Africa's legitimate right to respond to climate change and gives maximum consideration to Africa's concerns on long-term emission reduction targets. China also promised not to compete with Africa for financial assistance, and will provide assistance in terms of capital, technology and capacity building in light of Africa's actual needs. At present, China has cooperated with some African countries in biogas technology, hydropower, solar and wind power generation.

Seven. Give play to the leading role of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum.

In 2000, China and African countries jointly founded the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. So far, the forum has held four ministerial meetings and one summit, and established multi-level dialogue and cooperation mechanisms such as ministerial meetings, senior officials' meetings and entrepreneurs' meetings. Thanks to the joint efforts of China and Africa, the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation has become an important platform for collective dialogue between China and Africa and an effective mechanism for pragmatic cooperation. The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation has enhanced political mutual trust between China and Africa, led and promoted China-Africa cooperation, including economic and trade cooperation, continuously enriched the connotation of China-Africa relations and raised the level of China-Africa relations.

Since the first ministerial meeting of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2000, China has continuously introduced new economic and trade measures on the basis of long-term cooperation, mutual respect and equal consultation to promote the in-depth development of China-Africa economic and trade relations. These economic and trade measures meet the needs of Africa's development, and reflect the pragmatic and innovative spirit of the China government in China-Africa cooperation.

At the first ministerial meeting, China announced measures such as debt relief for Africa, encouraging enterprises to invest in Africa and training professionals. At the second ministerial meeting in 2003, China announced measures such as increasing aid to Africa, strengthening cooperation in human resources development, and granting duty-free treatment to some products exported to China by African least developed countries that have established diplomatic relations with China.

At the Beijing Summit and the Third Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation in 2006, China announced eight measures aimed at strengthening China-Africa pragmatic cooperation and supporting Africa's development, including expanding the scale of aid, providing preferential loans, building an AU conference center, expanding the scope of duty-free goods, establishing china-africa development fund, building overseas economic and trade cooperation zones, and setting up agricultural technology demonstration centers and malaria prevention centers. Thanks to the joint efforts of China and Africa, these eight measures were all implemented before the end of 2009.

At the fourth ministerial meeting of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held in 2009, China announced eight new initiatives, involving agriculture, environmental protection, investment promotion, debt relief, expanding market access, education, health care and other fields, which further highlighted improving people's livelihood in Africa, strengthening agricultural cooperation, increasing cooperation in human resources development, and enhancing Africa's independent development capacity. These initiatives are based on helping African countries solve current practical difficulties, aiming at helping Africa achieve sustainable development and further consolidating the foundation of Africa's economic and social development.

A series of economic and trade initiatives put forward by China at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation have benefited all African countries that have established diplomatic relations with China and brought tangible benefits to relevant African countries and people. In the future, the China government will continue to work with African countries to strengthen economic and trade cooperation within the framework of the Forum and promote the continuous and in-depth development of China-Africa new-type strategic partnership in the spirit of mutual benefit and win-win, friendly consultation, pragmatism and high efficiency.