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A 9-member CPAFFC delegation headed by its vice president Wang Yunze paid a goodwill visit to Gabon and Madagascar from September 14 to 28， 2003 at the invitation of Guy Nzouba-Ndama， president of the National Assembly of Gabon and Crescent Rakotofiringa， president of Madagascar-China Friendship Association. During the visit President Guy Nzouba-Ndama， Senate President Georges Rawiri， Second Vice President of the National Assembly Albert Ndjave Ndgov， Cultural Minister Pierre Amoughe Mba， Minister of Relations with the Parliament Rene Ndemezo'o Obiang and Chairman of the Gabon-China Friendship Group of the National Assembly Luc Marat Abyla of Gabon， and President of the National Assembly Rajemison Rakotomaharo and Foreign Minister Marcel Rangeva of Madagascar respectively met with the delegation or hosted banquet in its honour. The six acrobats from the Shandong Liaocheng Acrobatic Troupe coming with the delegation staged 9 performances together with local artists during the visit in the two countries， which were warmly received.

In Gabon， Cultural Minister Pierre Amoughe Mba met with the delegation and watched the performance given jointly by the artists of the Gabon Equator Circus and the Shandong Liaocheng Acrobatic Troupe several times. He said， China， with a long history， leads the world in acrobatics while the acrobatic school in Gabon was set up less than two years ago. He expressed the hope that China would give the school guidance in acrobatic art. The performance given by the acrobats at the reception held at the Chinese Embassy in Gabon to mark China's 54th National Day fully showed the charm of the Chinese acrobatic art. Senior Gabon officials including Senate President Georges Rawiri watched the performance with great interest from beginning to end and gave high appraisal of the performance. At the reception held by the Gabonese National Assembly to welcome the delegation， the impromptu acrobatic performance added a warm and friendly atmosphere. The second， third and fifth vice presidents of the National Assembly， First Senate Vice President Andje Mba， Chairman Luc Marat Abyla of the Gabon-China Friendship Group of the National Assembly， representative at the ministerial level from the Foreign Ministry Jean-Francois Ndongo， and Cultural Minister Pierre Amoughe Mba， among more than 200 people， attended the reception.

In Madagascar President Rakotomaharo of the National Assembly watched the performance twice. He said that the acrobats had attained high performing skills and that their performance was well-received by the local people. He added that their performance had promoted friendship between the people of the two countries. The Chinese acrobats gave 4 performances together with Madagascan artists in the capital and Tamatave Province. The governor of Tamatave said that the province had not seen any foreign acrobatic troupes in nearly 20 years and that the visit by the Chinese delegation had not only given impetus to local cultural activities， but also facilitated the communication of the minds of our two peoples through art.

The visit to Gabon and Madagascar lasted 10 days， during which more than 5，000 people watched the performance given by the Chinese acrobats. The audience from high ranking officials to ordinary people all showed great interest in the performance. Many people would not leave after the performance. They sought autographs， took pictures and have pictures taken with the acrobats. Many overseas Chinese and Gabonese and Madagascans of Chinese descent， old and young， came to watch the performance as happy as if they were celebrating the Chinese New Year.

Contacts between China and the two African countries have a long history. Madagascan National Assembly President Rakotomaharo pointed out， Chinese came to Madagascar several hundred years ago， engaging in fishing， growing vegetables and rice and building railways. They have played a very important role in economic construction of Madagascar and completely merged into the life of the Madagascan people. Madagascar and China should continue contacts in the economic， social， cultural and other fields at different levels. Madagascan Foreign Minister Marcel Rangeva held， the relations between Madagascar and China are stable and the personnel exchanges at different levels between the two countries have enhanced mutual understanding and friendship. The Madagascan Government shares the same views on major international issues with China and sticks to the one-China stand.

President Guy Nzouba-Ndama of the Gabonese National Assembly pointed out， the older generation of Chinese leaders from Mao Zedong to Deng Xiaoping attached great importance to developing friendly and cooperative relations with Gabon. Gabonese President El Hadj Omar Bongo， since assuming office in 1967， has paid 8 visits to China. The visit he will make in 2004 would be his ninth. This fully shows Gabon values the traditional friendship between the people of Gabon and China. The delegation had a working conference with the Gabon-China Friendship Group of the National Assembly， during which the Gabonese side expressed the hope to establish long-term contact with the CPAFFC and work together to serve as a bridge for the promotion of friendly cooperation in various fields between Gabon and China.

The delegation's visit to Gabon and Madagascar was short， but the impact of the visit will live in the memories of the two peoples. May friendship between the people of China and Gabon and Madagascar last generation after generation!