Navigating The Evolving Landscape Between China And Africa S Economic Engagements

China and Africa have forged a strong economic relationship since China’s accession to the WTO in 2001. This paper examines the evolution of these economic ties starting in the early 2000s, and the subsequent shift in the relationship triggered by the commodity price collapse in 2015 and by the COVID-19 pandemic. The potential effects on the African continent of a further slowdown in Chinese growth are analyzed, highlighting the varying effects on different countries in Africa, especially those heavily dependent on their economic relationship with China. The conclusion offers a discussion of ways how African countries and China could adapt to the changing relationship.

This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read at Oxford Scholarship Online and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations. Africa's recent progress in economic growth has been uneven across countries, and has not translated into structural transformation. Although economic ties between China and Africa have made a positive contribution this engagement has been uneven, shaped by variations in strategic approach, policy ownership, and implementation capacity among African governments. As China undergoes major economic rebalancing to upgrade to an innovation-driven economy, this is bound to affect China-Africa relations, offering both opportunities and challenges. Authored by leading scholars on Africa, China, and China-Africa relations, this volume brings together stimulating and thought-provoking perspectives, and insightful analyses. Focusing on Africa's economic development, it looks at core areas of structural transformation: productive investment and industrialization, international trade, infrastructure development, and financing. China-Africa relations are considered in the context of the global division of labour and power, and through the history and contexts of both China and Africa, a very diverse continent. This volume seeks to fill the gap in the existing literature, steer policy and scholarly debate on the progress and trajectory of China-Africa cooperation, and analyze China's development path as a source of learning for Africa.

China has gone from being a marginal to a leading power in Africa in just over two decades. Its striking ascendancy in the continent is commonly thought to have been primarily driven by economic interests, especially resources like oil. This book argues instead that politics defines the ‘new era’ of China–Africa relations, and examines the importance of politics across a range of areas, from foreign policy to debt, development and the Xi Jinping incarnation of the China model. Going beyond superficial depictions of China’s engagement as predatory or benign, this book explores how Africa is – and isn’t – integral to China’s global ambitions, from the Belt and Road Initiative to strategic competition with the United States. It demonstrates how African actors constrain, shape and use China’s engagement for their own purposes. As China seeks to protect its more established interests and Chinese citizens, it also shows how security has become a particularly notable new area of engagement. This innovative book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date guide to contemporary China–Africa relations. It will be essential reading for students and scholars working on global politics, development and international relations.

The core argument of this book is that China poses both challenges and creates opportunities for Africa, and that the transformative potentials of China-Africa engagements can be compared to Africa’s experiences with European colonialism. However, it would be patently misleading to claim any equivalence between African experiences of European colonialism with Africa’s engagements with China. Although, China does not replicate the exact colonial model, its actions have all elements of dependent relations, thus underpinning neo-colonialism with Chinese characteristics. Analysing China’s growing economic relations with Africa, this book posits that, Africa’s underdevelopment situation with China does not indicate a significant point of departure from the colonial model of development because China’s actions in Africa, although not exactly colonial, have all possibilities of Neocolonialist model with Chinese characteristics. As such the author argues that China’s increasing trade, FDI inflow and influence on the economic growth and development in Africa will result in a long-term negative impact in development outcomes and capacity building, governance practice, democratic transition and human rights for future self-reliance and sustainable development.

China is among a number of large developing country or new powers on the ascendance in the international system, all of which are deepening their economic relations with Africa However, China is the largest and most powerful of this group. it has sought closer economic relationships with other developing country regions and continents such as Latin America and Central Asia, but it is with Africa – the continent that hosts more developing countries than any other – that China has fostered the closest links. This book provides an overview of how the China – Africa relationship has evolved over the last few decades and examines whether it presents a new paradigm of ‘development relations’ in the international system. The contributors investigate what is particularly special about the emerging development partnership between Africa and China, and how it may evolve in the future. The contributors focus on various development capacity issues – infrastructural, industrial, technocratic, institutional, human capital, sustainable economic practices – and consider various debates on ‘development’ and development ideologies, including whether China’s practices in Africa pose a challenge to Western conventions on development assistance. China-Africa Development Relations will be of interest to those students and scholars of African studies, Chinese studies, international development and development studies.

This book advocates a broad outlook of China-Africa relations and highlights China’s soft power in Africa. Lahtinen discusses China’s impact in generating economic growth and argues how some African countries have become too dependent on it, as exposed by the recent economic downturn. This book not only bestows the rational and politics of China in Africa in its pursuit of global power in the changing economic and political landscape, but also opens and tackles issues of ideology, Confucianism, China Dream, soft power, culture, democracy, human rights, and geopolitics. Lahtinen argues that unlocking Africa's potential and its trajectory is up to Africa. This book provides an invaluable resource for politicians, policy advisers, researchers, practitioners, people in business and civic organization, and students of China studies, African studies, and international relations.

This collection juxtaposes a variety of approaches about China and Africa, and their interrelations seeking to go beyond early, simplistic formulations. Perspectives informed by Polanyi advance nuanced analysis of varieties of capitalisms and double-movements. It seeks to put contemporary China-Africa relations in critical, comparative context and in doing so, it will go beyond descriptions of inter-regional trade and investment, large- and small-scale sectors, to ask whether structural change is underway. Already it is apparent that the growing presence of China in Africa presents the latter with some novel options but whether these will generate a new embeddedness remains problematic. Highlighting the ’varieties of capitalisms’ in the new century, given the undeniable difficulties of extreme neo-liberalism in the US and UK by contrast, to the apparent ebullience of the emerging economies in the global South, this book examines such implications for international relations, international political economy, development studies and policies.

Africa and the World: Navigating Shifting Geopolitics is one of the first books to analyse the global geopolitical landscape from an African perspective, with a view to the opportunities and challenges facing the African continent. Authors in this edited volume argue for the need to re-imagine Africa’s role in the world. As a cradle of humanity, a historical fountain of profound scientific knowledge, an object of colonial conquest and, today, a collective of countries seeking to pool their sovereignties in order to improve the human condition, Africa has a unique opportunity to advance its own interests. Authors reflect on all these issues; they outline how developments in the global political economy impact on the continent and, inversely, how Africa can develop a strategic perspective that takes into account the dynamics playing out in a fraught global terrain. Central to this evaluation is the notion of ‘island Africa’: a vast island – with resources that extend into the oceans around it – that is a strategic centre by virtue of its geographic location, its endowments and its long-term potential. Authors assert that the positioning of ‘island Africa’ presents unique political, security and geo-economic benefi ts. Yet they also acknowledge that, as has happened historically, these very advantages can serve as a basis for new forms of domination and exploitation. In addition, this volume takes into account the socio-psychological factors that influence how nations of the world receive and interpret the present, and assess prospects for the future. The authors go beyond analysis of what is, to venture concrete proposals on what can be, with Africa exercising its agency. This requires the strengthening of continental integration and cohesion in pursuit of ideals that the African Union has enshrined in Agenda 2063. In this way, Africa would be able to engage – in a systemic and disciplined manner – with external powers to assert the continent’s own interests which, in their framing, are also the interests of humanity. A continent united in both purpose and action can be an active agent in shaping the evolving global order. This volume makes a strong case for precisely such a perspective and contributes to what should be an ongoing effort to analyse geopolitics with Africa as a critical frame of reference.