Competitor, Colonizer or Developer? The Many Faces of China in Africa

This paper analyses the evolving China-Africa relationship with particular reference to the competing perspectives on the impact of Chinese investment on the continent’s development. In doing so, it draws on two recent studies by the Brenthurst Foundation, one on China’s natural resource demand and the other on Chinese traders and small businesses in southern Africa. The paper also highlights potential flashpoints in future Chinese-African relations and the dangers inherent in Africa’s heavy reliance on Chinese resource demand. Ultimately, the paper concludes that China’s investment in Africa has for too long been assessed in binary terms, good or bad. Notwithstanding some troubling aspects to China’s role in Africa, that the continent has not derived a more substantial development ‘dividend’ from its burgeoning ties with China is largely down to its own failings, especially its leaders’ short-sightedness and lack of vision. In order to better exploit the growth of Chinese demand for its commodities, Africa needs to be more proactive in defining its own interests.