HNU was recently shortlisted for the Chinese membership in both the China-Africa Universities 100 Cooperation Plan and the China-Africa Consortium of Universities Exchange Mechanism.

At the China-Africa Leaders' Dialogue held in Johannesburg in 2023, Chinese President Xi Jinping proposed to launch the Plan for China-Africa Cooperation on Talent Development. In order to implement the plan, the China-Africa Universities 100 Cooperation Plan has been rolled out on the basis of the China-Africa Universities 20+20 Cooperation Plan which was initiated in 2010. The Chinese member universities cover 10 areas of cooperation, including digital education, health, agricultural development, trade and investment, and mining resources. They will form clusters to carry out collaboration with African partners in sci-tech research, student exchange, teacher exchange visits, and talent cultivation. The plan will conduct investigations with a focus on important theories and practical problems in China-Africa cooperation in various fields, and recruit and select the participating universities.

HNU was selected as one of the two universities included in the plan in the field of trade and investment. Specific projects will be led by the China-Africa Economic & Trade Research Institute, and participated by HNU's College of Economics and Trade, College of Public Administration, Business School, and School of Law. These projects will focus on the national strategic missions of enhancing China-Africa economic and trade cooperation which are undertaken by Hunan Province, relying on the national-level platforms such as the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo (CAETE) and the Pioneering Zone for In-depth China-Africa Economic and Trade Cooperation. HNU will leverage the advantages of international trade as a national-level key discipline, and collaborate with African universities, relevant government departments, enterprises, and institutions.

HNU has long been attaching importance to multi-field and cross-disciplinary cooperation with African universities and think tanks. It has established close relationship with South Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone. HNU has been included in the China-Africa Universities 20+20 Cooperation Plan, and has maintained in-depth cooperation with Stellenbosch University of South Africa and Hassan 1er University of Morocco. It is a member of the BRICS Universities League (BRICS UL), and has reached agreements with a number of universities in South Africa on economics discipline cooperation. It has continued to carry out the programs of the Ministry of Education, including the "Belt and Road" international student programs, "Belt and Road" International MBA Class, and training classes for senior officials from African Countries. It has hosted such international events as the China-Africa Civil Engineering Forum and the China-Africa Economy and Trade Expo Think Tank Dialogue. It has reached intention of collaboration with domestic African research think tanks and representatives of Ethiopian and other African countries' think tanks on establishing the China-Africa Economy and Trade Research Think Tank Alliance. It has inked cooperation agreements with the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and the Africa Policy Institute in Kenya.