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How the relationship between China and African countries has evolved into mutual dependence

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China and Africa are two emerging regions increasingly playing a significant role on the global stage. As their relationship has deepened both economically and politically, China has emerged as sub-Saharan Africa’s largest individual country trading partner, according to the International Monetary Fund. On the sidelines of the Salzburg Global Pathways to Peace Initiative "Crossing New Rivers by Feeling the Stones? Aspirations, Expectations, and China's Role in the 21st Century”, Dr. Margaret Pearson and Dr. Shirley Yu contributed their insights on the evolution of the China-Africa relationship.

The origins of the China-Africa relationship

China and Africa have a long history of mutual political support in the global anti-colonial movement in the early 20th Century, the Non-Aligned Movement during the Cold War era, and the Global South agenda at the UN General Assembly. However, a comprehensive framework outlining China’s strategic relationship with Africa had not been institutionalized by China until the beginning of the 21st century. According to Dr. Shirley Yu, Senior Fellow and Director of the China-Africa Initiative at the London School of Economics, “major transformations” in their relationship were ushered in with the establishment of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in 2000. FOCAC has been instrumental in developing comprehensive Africa-China relations and enabling multilateral relationships between China and African states.

Shirley pointed out that, in the early 2000s, the China-Africa economic relationship was primarily driven by the trade of low-value-added goods. 

Starting from 2006, and accelerated after the global financial crisis, “we begin to see the relationship add dimensions of Chinese financing, direct investment, and state-led lending programs,” she explained. The change led to China becoming Africa’s largest sovereign creditor and FDI originator by 2020.

In 2013, China initiated its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This global infrastructure development initiative has enabled China to make “systematic investments into Africa’s infrastructure”; this ranges from physical infrastructure like rails, roads, and ports, increasingly to telecom, digital, renewable, cloud, space, and public goods infrastructures over the past decade.

China’s importance for Africa

“China is very important for Africa,” remarked Dr. Margaret Pearson, a professor at the University of Maryland. She explained that Africa’s export opportunities lie mainly in its abundant sectors, such as minerals. Shirley added that "Africa’s trade [with China] has grown twenty times since the beginning of the 21st century,” signifying the deep evolution of their economic relationship.

Chinese investments have benefitted Africa by increasing the quality of life. Margaret remarked, “A lot of the products that China has brought to Africa have been very important in helping modernize the continent”. She explained that China has helped accelerate the spread of technology across Africa, particularly low-cost and high-technology consumer goods, such as smartphones, which have improved connectivity throughout the continent.

Shirley similarly highlighted that “we are starting to see a pivot of China’s infrastructure development in Africa” from traditional investment in hard infrastructure to the development of renewable energy capabilities, public health systems, education, jobs, and digital and sustainability training; she observed that “we are starting to see China’s engagement in building up healthcare systems in Africa post-COVID-19”. 

Africa’s importance for China

Referring to Africa as “China’s potential economic savior,” Shirley pointed out that China’s dwindling demographic situation is causing manufacturers to move out of the country. This opens up the opportunity for Africa to replace some of the Chinese low-to-middle-end manufacturing in the global value chain. 

Because “China is the world’s largest energy and food importer,” Shirley suggested that Africa is helping fulfill China’s needs. Africa also holds political benefits for China, as Margaret remarked, “The Chinese can call on new friends at times when it needs them in the international arena”.

Margaret, however, added a caveat to how important Africa is to China. “The question of why Africa is important for China is a little bit more difficult [to answer],” she commented, elaborating that “most of the things that Africans supply can be bought elsewhere,” and therefore, “there is a certain vulnerability to Africa”. Margaret pointed out that increased Chinese investments in Southeast Asia and Latin America could signal that China is diversifying its interests away from Africa. 

Challenges in the China-Africa relationship

The China-Africa relationship is not without its set of challenges. Shirley expressed concerns that Africans might feel like “China is not doing enough”. She highlighted the perception that Chinese investments do not impose standards on corruption and political transparency and are “benefitting the political elites rather than the broader African public”. She emphasized that these “are real issues that China needs to tackle,” further adding that Africa bears scars from the colonial era and that it is essential not to repeat those mistakes. 

Margaret highlighted another challenge, namely “the lack of capacity on the part of the African governments, bureaucracies, and foreign ministers to deal with China”. She explained that this makes it difficult for both parties to be “on an even ground in terms of negotiating skills, which continues to be a really big challenge”.

Way forward

Shirley highlighted Africa's rising role in the world, citing that “at the end of the 21st Century, Africa is going to house 40% of the world's population. We cannot have global prosperity without Africa’s prosperity.” Drawing parallels between China and Africa, she encouraged Western corporations to invest in Africa with a “long-term vision,” similar to how they invested in China when its market was opened up.

The China-Africa relationship shows how the developing world is forging greater connections within itself. In a world characterized by shifting power dynamics and economic imperatives, both regions will need to navigate the nuanced complexities and opportunities inherent in this partnership.

Dr. Margaret Pearson is Dr. Horace E. and Wilma V. Harrison Distinguished Professor and Distinguished Scholar-Teacher in the Department of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland.

Dr. Shirley Yu is the Director of the China-Africa Initiative at the Firoz Lalji Institute for Africa at the London School of Economics and a Senior Practitioner Fellow with the Ash Center of Harvard Kennedy School. She is also a professor at the IE Business School and a distinguished Foreign Faculty Professor at the National Defence University, Islamabad.. 

Margaret Pearson and Shirley Yu attended the Salzburg Global Pathways to Peace Initiative titled “Crossing New Rivers by Feeling the Stones? Aspirations, Expectations, and China's Role in the 21st Century” from February 18 to 21, 2024. This program was a forward-looking opportunity to debate and understand the future of global engagement with a rising China. It convened an intergenerational, international, and interdisciplinary group from government, the private sector, and civil society to engage in off-the-record conversations to evaluate sources of misunderstanding between China and the globe, to explore state and non-state mechanisms through which to productively engage China, and to identify risk-mitigating pathways.