Thousands of members of China’s political elite are in Beijing for the Two Sessions (lianghui), an annual gathering that will set the government’s agenda for the next year. While the main focus of the two meetings will be domestic, they give a rare glimpse into the government’s planning and how that might affect Africa and the wider Global South.

The biggest focus this year is the economy. In his official report, Premier Li Keqiang predicted an official growth target of 5.5%. This will be the lowest growth rate in years, and notably lower than the 8.1% clocked in 2021. China’s zero-tolerance COVID policy has slowed economic growth, as has a domestic real estate crisis. The conflict in Ukraine also seems set to dampen growth, due to knock-on effects on commodity prices, and disruption of supply chains.