<font class="UCASE">china</font> has promised massive financial aid to Africa. At a two-day meet in Beijing, attended by 35 of the 53 African nations, Chinese president Hu Jintao pledged to double China's aid to Africa from its 2006 level by 2009. Speaking at the conference's opening on November 4, he promised <font class="UCASE">us $</font>3 billion in loans, <font class="UCASE">us $</font>2 billion in export credits and a <font class="UCASE">us $</font>5 billion fund to encourage Chinese investment in Africa.