China´s relationship with Africa has been a constantly growing on, although there have been a few snags as of late. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is set to make his first over Africa trip in hops to making the path smoother for future partnerships.  He will visit four countries in Africa on his first tour of the continent since assuming his position a little over a year ago, notes Yahoo News.

Li will visit Ethiopia, Nigeria, Angola and Kenya during the trip, which begins today and lasts for a week, officials said. He will also visit the headquarters of the African Union in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

“It is an important visit oriented towards the whole continent,” Zhang Ming, Chinese vice-minister for foreign affairs, told reporters, stressing that Li will be visiting Africa’s eastern, western and southern regions.

It “highlights the great importance we attach to China-Africa relations”, he added.

Zhang also said that renewing the “traditional friendship” between China and Africa as well as advancing a “new type of strategic partnership” were goals of the visit.

“Li is scheduled to spend three days in Nigeria, where he will meet President Goodluck Jonathan and also attend the World Economic Forum on Africa, which starts in the capital, Abuja, on Wednesday,” reports Yahoo.

Since 2009, China has been Africa’s largest trading partner for five consecutive years, according to Chinese data. China’s direct investments to Africa reached $25 billion, according to Assistant Minister of Commerce Zhang Xiangchen.