The Qiaochuifang Workshop results show is held in Jinhua. [Photo/Tide News]

The 2026 China-Africa Cultural Silk Road Exchange Event opened on Nov 7 in Jinhua, Zhejiang province, bringing together more than 200 government officials, diplomats, artists, experts, and business representatives from Africa and China.

The event continued the "one conference, one workshop, one market" model to make cultural exchanges tangible.

At the Conference on China-Africa Cultural and Tourism Cooperation and Exchange, participants said policy and market forces are opening new spaces for cooperation. China has signed tourism agreements with over 30 African countries, and 34 are approved outbound group tourism destinations for Chinese citizens.

The Qiaochuifang Workshop, a brand event by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Zhejiang Provincial Department of Culture, Radio, Television, and Tourism, marked its 2026 edition with a 30-day woodcarving exchange. Artists from Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, and Tanzania worked with Dongyang woodcarving inheritors, displaying works ranging from figures and vessels to abstract sculptures.

The Jinhua Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) Market showcased 18 ICH projects and more than 130 items, including dragon dances, Wuzhou kiln ceramics, and tin carvings. Matchmaking sessions on crafts and tourism discussed skill exchanges, talent training, and industry-tourism integration.

As part of the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges, the Zhejiang Wuju Opera Art Research Institute toured Lesotho and Zimbabwe in October. A tourism promotion series also launched while the In Jinhua micro-documentary reached about 30 African countries and 100 million people.