8.3 The two sides will continue to enhance experience sharing on poverty reduction, education, employment, health, agriculture and other areas by establishing dialogue mechanisms at various levels for poverty reduction and rural development and holding events including the FOCAC Meeting on Poverty Reduction and Development, the China-Africa Youth Exchange Program on Poverty Reduction and Rural Development, the China-Africa Ministerial Meeting on Health Cooperation and Development and the ChinaAfrica Agriculture Forum. 8.4 The two sides are committed to advancing exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations and cultures, encouraging and supporting cultural dialogue, strengthening exchanges and cooperation between institutions in academic research, press and publishing, film and television production and other fields, stepping up exchanges and mutual visits of youth, and further enhancing experience sharing on gender equality and women empowerment. 8.5 The two sides will continue to strengthen policy dialogue, exchanges and cooperation in such fields as ecological protection, maritime cooperation, desertification prevention and treatment, wildlife protection and energy development strategy, and enhance environmental policy exchanges and dialogue and conduct joint research through platforms including the China-Africa Environmental Cooperation Center. 8.6 China will strengthen exchanges with African countries on peacekeeping policy and skills under the framework of the UN, expand exchanges and training cooperation between defence and military personnel, deepen counter-terrorism cooperation, and step up intelligence sharing on combating international terrorist organizations. 9. FOCAC Institutional Development 9.1 The two sides are satisfied to see the efficient and smooth operation of the Coordinator’s Meeting on the Implementation of the Follow-up Actions of the 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit, the Senior Officials Meetings (SOMs), and consultations between the Chinese Follow-up Committee of FOCAC and the African diplomatic corps in China since the FOCAC Beijing Summit. 9.2 The two sides will continue to leverage the role of existing sub-forums under FOCAC, and jointly advance the establishment or institutionalization of new sub-forums to substantiate FOCAC and China-Africa cooperation across all areas, including the considerations of other frameworks to strengthen FOCAC in due course. 9.3 In accordance with the procedures of the FOCAC follow-up mechanism, the two sides decide to hold the 9th Ministerial Conference in People’s Republic of China in 2024 and, before that, the 16th and 17th SOMs respectively in 2023 and 2024. 35/36