DAKAR (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Friday that Canada wants a growing relationship with China, but that investments must be scrutinized from a national security perspective.

Ottawa has indicated strongly that it would exclude Chinese telecom equipment giant Huawei Technologies Co Lrd from helping to build a secure Canadian government communications network because of possible security risks.

"We will ensure as a government that we have not only a growing relationship with China but a relationship with China that is in Canada's best interests," Harper said on a visit to Dakar, Senegal. "And of course (...) there's a national security dimension to this relationship, in fact to all our activities, that we take very seriously."

(Reporting by Joe Penney; Writing by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by David Lewis)