| Publication |
2014.
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| Summary/Abstract |
The rapid intensification of ties between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Africa's 54 countries is of considerable geopolitical significance. It is impossible to understand how the PRC has sustained year-on-year breathtaking growth without factoring in the contribution of African commodity exports and the profits reaped by Chinese enterprises through African demand for consumer goods, construction projects, and information and communication technology services. An extensive literature analyses the China-Africa story: an initial shouting match pitted those who cast Beijing as leading the re-colonization of the continent1 against authors praising China as Africa's savior at a time when the West would only engage through the lens of the Global War on Terror and rock star-driven charity.2 In recent years, a more nuanced conversation has underscored historical dimensions to the China-Africa relationship, exploring change and continuity in Africa's place in the global political economy, and deconstructing the myth that all Chinese actors-such as PRC embassies, state-owned enterprises, private firms, and migrating individuals-share a unity of purpose, guided by a grand plan hatched by the Chinese Communist Party.3
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