China-Africa cultural exchange programs have been expanding in recent years, with collaboration opportunities now stretching to academic and scientific cooperation in fields such as archaeology.
In recent years, Chinese archaeologists have had more opportunities to take part in joint archaeological research with African counterparts in the continent as a result of intergovernmental agreements. This breakthrough has been made possible through the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) which provided a framework for such fruitful undertakings.
According to statistics, Chinese archaeologists are actively involved in numerous archaeological projects in Africa, with cooperation agreements spreading across almost half of the countries on the continent.
In Kenya, Chinese archaeologists, for instance, have conducted joint research projects with their local counterparts into the origins of modern humans. They began excavations dating back to the mid-Paleolithic period. The experts jointly identified a good number of key excavation sites in the area, where stone tools and animal fossils spanning the Early, Middle, and Late Stone Age were unearthed, offering new clues to the origin of modern humans.
The archaeological team included experts and scholars from the fields of archaeology, paleontology, and environmental science from China and Kenya, as well as many local members, laying a solid foundation for Sino-Kenyan cooperation and cultural exchange.
In 2017 and 2018, the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Heritage and Archaeology, Shandong University, Luoyang Municipal Institute of Archaeology, and the National Museum of Kenya jointly excavated the Kimengich Site, located in Koriema Town, Baringo County, covering an area of 114 square meters.
Again, in 2019 and 2023, the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Heritage and Archaeology and Luoyang Municipal Institute of Archaeology, together with the National Museum of Kenya, excavated the Lake Bogoria Site, located in Marigat Town, Baringo County, covering an area of 143 square meters. Over 5,000 stone artifacts and animal fossils were found, mainly from the Middle Stone Age.
The joint team will conduct further research to determine the exact period when tools were produced.
Through cooperation, Chinese archaeologists brought modern equipment and technologies such as aerial drones, high-precision GPS, three-dimensional scanners, stone tool photography, and three-dimensional modeling to be used jointly with their Kenyan colleagues.
This scientific exploration was made possible by the signing of a cooperation framework agreement between the Henan Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage with the National Museum of Kenya back in 2014. The agreement paved the way for the Sino-Kenyan Paleolithic Archaeology Project implementation, involving paleolithic archaeological surveys, excavations, and research.
The research project is expected to unearth more Paleolithic sites dating from 100ka to 300ka years ago in Kenya with a focus on areas around Lake Baringo and Lake Bogoria, in a bid to get more clues and evidence for the study of modern human origins.
The project has so far achieved great milestones. At a preliminary stage, the archaeological work has proven that the Baringo region of the East African Rift Valley has a very rich Paleolithic cultural heritage, which is of great significance for exploring the international academic frontier of modern human origins.
The joint archaeological team has so far surveyed over 60 Paleolithic localities around Lakes Baringo and Bogoria. Additionally, the Makalia locality in Nakuru County is the first Paleolithic site discovered by Chinese archaeologists in Africa. The microliths found at the Kimengich Site are of great significance for studying the origin and spread of the Late Paleolithic microlithic culture. The Levallois technique stone artifacts found at the Lake Bogoria Site provide important materials for discussing their origin and relationship with early modern humans.
Besides, the project has received major publicity in Chinese media outlets such as Xinhua News Agency, CCTV, People’s Daily, China Daily, Henan Daily, and Guangzhou Daily, as well as by institutions such as Guangming Online and China.
This has helped draw attention to Kenya among international audiences and scholars. The book “From Henan to East Africa, Sino-Kenya Archaeology” detailing ongoing archaeological projects will also be published soon.
What’s more, as one of the outcomes of Chinese archaeology going global, the Lake Bogoria Site in the Republic of Kenya was selected as the only project for the “Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Archaeology Forum 2023 Foreign Archaeological New Discoveries” due to its importance.
Future Plans
With strong support and commitment under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Heritage and Archaeology, and the National Museum of Kenya have reached a consensus to renew the cooperation framework agreement for another five years.
A delegation of four people from the National Museum of Kenya will visit Henan soon to jointly build a platform for cultural exchanges between China and Kenya.
National Museums of Kenya Director-General Prof. Mary Gikungu has lauded the support extended to the institution by the People’s Republic of China to promote archaeological projects.
She particularly highlighted capacity-building efforts in several areas of cultural and heritage conservation, as one of the key pillars of the relationship.
“The two countries have had a long-standing cordial working relationship. As a result, National Museums of Kenya has received extensive support from the People’s Republic of China through its embassy in Nairobi in the heritage sector,” she said
Prof Gikungu lauded China for scholarship programmes that have seen 52 MSc and 12 PhD students trained in Chinese Universities supported by China through collaborative projects between the institution and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
While focusing on international archaeological topics such as the study of modern human origins, it will lay a solid foundation for future multidisciplinary cooperation between China and Kenya in areas such as cultural heritage protection, international open platforms, and international academic conferences.
Both sides hope that through the ongoing project, and following key findings in China in recent years, Chinese scholars can also have their voices better heard in the study of modern humans — which is thought to have begun some 200,000 years ago.
