A moment of silence for a sister who helped make the book possible. A publisher who once could not find a publisher of his own. A businessman who has crossed the Indian Ocean 24 times and bought 100 copies of a book by two young men to put it in the hands of young South Africans. These were the threads of a Wednesday evening at Exclusive Books in the V&A Waterfront, where Michael Andisile Mayalo and Thabiso Mthembu launched Xi Jinping and China-South Africa Relations: The Gen Z Youth Perspective in Cape Town.
The celebration carried a weight of grief. Mthembu, the book’s co-author, could not attend after the recent passing of his sister, a woman who had played an important role in making the book possible. Guests sent their condolences to him and his family. The room then paused in a moment of silence in her memory. It was a reminder that behind every book on international relations stand families, sacrifices and people who never see their names on a cover.
For Mayalo, who spoke on behalf of both authors, the evening was above all about the people in the room. He thanked the speakers and guests for their collaboration and support, saying the launch showed that partnerships between government, business, civil society and youth can turn ideas into action.
Much of his gratitude was directed at Dr Iqbal Survé, the businessman, philanthropist and former BRICS Business Council chairperson who delivered the keynote address. Mayalo paid tribute to Dr Survé’s long record of creating and sustaining employment for South Africans, and thanked him for his investment in youth empowerment and for the advice he has passed on to young people: pursue your ambitions, stay true to yourself, never settle, and always lead with integrity.
In one of the most heartfelt moments of the night, Mayalo revealed that Dr Survé has personally given him his time and guidance since he was in Grade 11. He described that generosity and kindness as rare, and said he has seen first-hand the true impact of Dr Survé’s work. He acknowledged that Dr Survé has faced persistent battles over the years, but said his contribution has not gone unnoticed, and that his determination to uplift others is deeply appreciated by the many young people whose lives he has touched. The room answered with warm and sustained applause.
Dr Survé, for his part, told guests he had come because the book had motivated him. He has visited China 24 times, and he pledged to work with the authors and the relevant council to take the initiative further. “It is not just about talking,” he said. He also struck a note of unity: “Whether East or West, North or South, everyone has a role to play.”
His keynote connected the evening to his own book, A Shared Future for Humanity, launched earlier this year. Its message, he explained, is that nations and peoples share a common destiny, and that progress comes through cooperation, mutual respect and a commitment to the wellbeing of humanity as a whole. In Mayalo and Mthembu, he said, he saw a new generation carrying that vision forward.
Dr Survé reminded guests that Africa is the world’s youngest continent, and that its young people are not only its future but the generation that will shape it. That, he said, is exactly why this book matters: it is written by young South Africans, for young people, and gives the generation that will inherit the China-South Africa relationship a voice in defining it today.
Employment, he emphasised, remains South Africa’s most pressing need. He described his personal commitment as ensuring his businesses help reduce unemployment rather than add to it. Drawing on his experience of China, he said he has applied lessons from its development model in his own enterprises, and expressed his conviction that South Africa, like China, can overcome poverty if the concerns of its citizens are addressed seriously and with urgency. In a tangible gesture, he purchased 100 copies of the book for distribution to young people across the country, an initiative that will continue beyond the launch into schools, universities and communities.
Meanwhile, the publisher’s own story resonated with the theme. Tshepo Nketle, founder and publisher of Lesedi House Inc., told guests how the company began: unable to find a publisher for his own first book, he published it independently, and that decision led him to establish Lesedi House. Its mission, he said, is to give a platform to writers from township communities and to Black authors whose stories have historically been underrepresented in South African publishing. A work by two young South Africans on international relations, he noted, reflects precisely the voices Lesedi House was created to amplify. Publishing the book also took him further than he imagined. Through the project he travelled to China and experienced first-hand the country, people and development story the authors write about. “It is a book that I encourage many people, all the youth, to make sure they read,” he said.
The book itself, published by Lesedi House Inc., examines one of the most important international relationships of the 21st century through the eyes of Generation Z. Across 16 chapters, Mayalo and Mthembu trace the history of modern China-South Africa friendship, the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, and China’s Global Development, Security, Civilization and Governance Initiatives, then ask what each means for young South Africans in education, technology, culture, green energy and enterprise. In his foreword, Professor David Monyae of the University of Johannesburg describes Gen Z as “both beneficiary and architect of a changing global order”. The authors frame the relationship as one of “partnership rather than hierarchy, dialogue rather than confrontation, and development rather than dependency”.
Mayalo explained that the book brings together research from young people in both China and South Africa with his own experiences of living and studying in China. The aim, he said, is to show how Gen Z on both sides sees the relationship and what it can offer them. Reflecting on what drew him to the subject, he pointed to China’s success in lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, arguing that young South Africans can learn from that experience while charting their own path. Mayalo, a youth activist and alumnus of Peking University, is also the author of China Through My Eyes: A Journey of a Young South African to China. Mthembu is a political writer with a degree in International Relations who writes on diplomacy, regional cooperation and development in Africa.
The Cape Town launch followed the book’s first launch in Pretoria on 16 June, the 50th anniversary of the 1976 Soweto uprising, and came during the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges, which places youth at the centre of relations between the two regions. The evening, hosted by China-Africa Dialogue NPC under the theme “Bridging Nations, Empowering Youth: Reflections on South Africa-China Relations”, brought together South African and Chinese guests, among them diplomats, business leaders, publishers, community leaders and a strong contingent of young people, along with family and friends of both authors. Among the guests were Mrs Tricia Survé, founder of the Tricia Survé Foundation, and Atlegang Lekabe. Acting Consul-General of the People’s Republic of China in Cape Town, Wang Xiao, highlighted the depth of economic ties: “For 16 consecutive years, China has remained South Africa’s largest trading partner and largest export market,” she said.
The evening closed with the official unveiling of the book, photographs and a signing. But for Mayalo and Mthembu, the launch is not the end of the journey. With the 100 copies donated by Dr Survé in hand, they are taking the conversation to classrooms, university campuses and communities across South Africa, so that young people far beyond the formal world of diplomacy have a voice in shaping their country’s place in a changing world.