Hot Off The Press: Understanding China’s strategy in Africa

The South African Institute of International Affairs has released a host of new publications highlighting various emerging policy issues and areas of engagement between the African continent and China. The China-Africa Project, which began its activities in 2007, has produced a number of country-based analyses on several African countries, as well as sectoral analyses in telecommunications, finance, agriculture, resources, development assistance and special economic zones. The publications seek to contribute to a better understanding of China's overall strategy in Africa, assessing its impact on development and governance on the continent.

The country-specific studies, rather than simply being a set of sectoral studies of Chinese investments in particular economies, provide a context-sensitive and comprehensive analysis of how these various sectors contribute to economic growth and development; their political economies, especially vis-à-vis foreign service providers; and the role the Chinese are playing in these sectors. The studies are underpinned by the idea that increased trade in services between China and Africa is poorly understood, but also potentially extremely beneficial to recipient African countries (unlike, perhaps, investments and trade in natural resources) if used effectively as leverage for broader economic development.