Félix Tshisekedi, the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, left for a trip to Beijing last week amid sky-high expectations of both new deals and the significant reworking of current agreements widely seen in his country as favoring Chinese actors. None of this happened.
Instead, he returned with a fistful of non-binding MoUs to widespread dissatisfaction back home. Since then, DRC officials have worked overtime to try and spin the trip as a longer-term ...
Day: April 18, 2022
Lockdowns, Floods in South Africa and China Prompt Massive Disruptions to One of the World’s Most Important Trade Routes
Simultaneous disruptions to the largest ports in China and South Africa are threatening to upend one of the world's most important trade routes. The ongoing lockdowns in Shanghai as part of the city's battle against Omicron have led to a major slowdown ...
“Food Diplomacy” is the New “Vaccine Diplomacy” in Africa
If 2021 was the year of so-called "vaccine diplomacy" in Africa where the world's major powers stingily distributed COVID-19 vaccines to low-income countries while preaching to their geopolitical rivals, 2022 is going to be the year of "food diplomacy." The worsening ...
Tanzanian Presidential Visit to Washington Raises Questions about Africa Focus
Press coverage of Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s meeting with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in Washington DC on Friday revealed how geopolitics are reshaping U.S.-Africa relations. While Tanzanian coverage of the meeting focused on investment pledges, Voice of America framed the visit in the context ...
Chinese Embassy in Nigeria Hits Back at Obscure Election Rumors
The Chinese embassy in Nigeria came out forcefully against a report on an obscure news website that alleged China plans to support the candidacy of Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi in the country’s upcoming presidential election. The embassy tweeted an image of the article, branded ‘FAKE ...
Chinese Embassy in Nigeria Suddenly Discovers the Environmental Impact of Chinese Illegal Mining
The Chinese embassy in Nigeria has hurriedly expressed support for calls to clean up the Osun River, which feeds into the densely inhabited Lagos lagoon, following months of reporting that Chinese mining companies are partly responsible for polluting the waterway with heavy metals. ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
DRC Government Tries to Reframe Underwhelming Beijing Visit
Rare $20 Million Chinese Aid Grant to Uganda
The Chinese embassy in Kampala announced that Beijing will provide Uganda with a $20 million aid grant intended to support social development initiatives. While this sum doesn't stand out compared to Western aid allocations, it is notable because these kinds of conventional aid ...
New Report Kills off the Mombasa Port Seizure Conspiracy Theory
Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway is now arguably the most controversial Chinese project in Africa, due to runaway rumors that debt from the notoriously opaque agreement will lead to the seizure of the port of Mombasa by Chinese banks. This controversy prompted Professor Deborah ...
Chinese Companies are Transforming the African Business Environment: Economist
While discussions of Africa-China engagement tend to focus on the government-to-government level, Chinese private companies are quietly transforming the African business landscape. So writes the noted Kenyan economist Anzetse Were, in a recent article for SupChina. She argues that the Chinese ...
Biden-ASEAN Summit is Back On, Cue Chinese Complaints
A summit between the United States and the countries of the Association of Southeast Asian States (ASEAN) is back on. The White House announced that President Joe Biden will meet with leaders from the group on 12 and 13 May. This follows the recent cancellation of an earlier iteration ...
Concealed Chinese Propaganda in Nigeria Aims to Change Negative Media Narrative on Shanghai Lockdowns
Shanghai's controversial methods in trying to contain the spread of Omicron have sparked widespread negative media coverage in China and around the world. Now it appears that Chinese propaganda authorities are trying to change that perception by providing broadcasters in places ...