The conference on the Forum of China-Africa Cooperation was held from September 4 to 6, 2024, in Beijing. The summit has been held every three years since 2000. China has become a significant player in the African continent, heavily investing in mining and industrial needs, and its development banks are providing loans to construct railways, roads, and other important infrastructure under the Belt and Road initiative.
More than 50 African leaders attended the summit held in China, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres showed their presence during the summit. China has promised more than 50 billion dollars in financial aid to Africa over the next three years and has assured deeper cooperation in infrastructure, trade, agriculture and investment. The Chinese have also promised to create one million jobs for Africans. In his address to the assembly, António Guterres emphasised to African leaders that the strengthening of relations between China and the African continent has the potential to significantly advance the renewable energy revolution.
China’s Economic Influence in Africa
China being the second largest economy in the world has made Africa one of its largest trading partners and has worked to access the vast natural resources including copper, gold, lithium and rare earth minerals. The African economy has benefited by the loans provided by China in developing its infrastructure, but while these loan fund the infrastructure projects they also saddle these nations with significant debt, leading to financial instability and increased dependency on China. Experts believe that the Chinese government loans and aid to Africa have caused rapid growth in the sovereign debt of African countries. Large-scale loans to the African countries, despite evaluating the actual debt situations, increase the debt burden to the African countries and increase the debt risk. Thus, forcing these countries to surrender to China. This raises concerns about China’s growing influence over these countries’ political and economic affairs. China’s engagement in the economy and development of Africa has taken a pivotal shift from a development-oriented approach to a political overtone. In recent time China has been trying to position itself as the leader of the global south. Despite not being well recognised as the face of the Global South, largely its efforts in rewriting the international order resonate with the African nations feeling abandoned and frustrated by their Western partners.
China’s development loans to Africa have seen falling since 2016. Still, we could now assume with a closer lens that the lending will increase due to the demand and supply factor and China’s active presence in the region. The active involvement of China in the African continent could affect Africa’s relations with Western powers like the United States, and it could also impact Africa’s relations with other global powers, leading to changing regional dynamics and alliances in the region
Geopolitical shift from the west
The United States is an important actor in Africa. Still, China’s growing investments in recent years have been a point of contention between the two countries amid their differing economic interests.
For a long time, the United States has expressed its concerns over China’s involvement in Africa, particularly regarding the Belt and Road initiative, which is being criticised for putting African countries in huge debt. The attempt of the United States to counter China’s influence in Africa through the ‘Prosper Africa Program’ which aims to increase U.S. trade and investment in the continent. However, the investment-driven initiative focuses on long term economic relationships. The program also needs political stability to attract private-sector players. As the bill needs several significant improvements in the policy aspect, the policy only plays a minimal role in countering the economic dominance of China in Africa
The ‘African Growth and Opportunity Act’ (AGOA) is one of the effective policies of the United States for economic prosperity among the nations. Experts believe that the policy has failed to accommodate most of African countries due to its eligibility requirements. Many other eligible countries have not been able to take full advantage of the policy due to limited productive capacity.
China has used its economic influence to gain political leverage in Africa. at present China remains by far the largest lender and a two-way trading partner to the African continent. Though the European Union remains the largest trading partner, the divide among European countries and investments that come with strings attached have caused local authorities to prefer Chinese investors as a good alternative over European counterparts.
Prospects for Africa
In the contemporary times Africa has well established relations with major powers such as USA, EU and Russia and the countries from the global south. As Chinas export to Africa has increased tremendously over the years, China has emerged as an essential source of financial contributor to African countries and their development. Despite the aid to African nations from United States and European union has also increased in the recent year, the active engagement of China in the continent has put the African nations into a decision dilemma. Africa accounts to 3% of global GDP which makes its crucial for African nations to establish good relations with economically stronger countries. It would be a smart move if Africa engages more with China which would help them to reduce poverty and ensure economic prosperity. But above all the inclusive economic growth in Africa requires stability in the region. The internal conflicts and other issues are making the local economies weaker and they are struggling to repay the debt that is already in existence. Only when economic development on the continent is ensured, tensions will reduce and peace will prevail in the region.
Conclusion
China’s deepening role in the African economy and infrastructural development has positioned the country as a dominant player in the continent. Despite China’s investments paving the way for growth in Africa, they also raise concerns about the rising debt and long-term dependency to China. The shifting geopolitical landscape has changed not only its relationship with China but also with the Western world. Today, Africa needs to establish a balance, prioritise its economic stability, and manage its debts. As China’s presence grows in the region, the African nations will face the challenge of crafting policies that leverage external partnerships for development in the continent.
