Analysis
Diverse voices, unique insights on key issues shaping China’s engagement throughout the Global South.
analysis
Lights On: Prospects for Renewable Energy in Southern Africa Amid Pandemic and Debt Distress
By Cecilia Springer and Magalie Masamba A November 2020 report found the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region could achieve full energy access and 53% renewable energy (RE) installed capacity by 2040 with an investment of nearly $53 billion.
China’s Overseas Fishing Fleet and the Global South
by Chris Alden and Sérgio Chichava While much of the Western attention is focused on the grey zone activities pursued by Chinese fishing fleets and their purported role in the strategic expansion of China’s interests in the South China Sea, less ...
What Will U.S. Diplomats Talk About Now?
After knowing for weeks that the end of Roe v Wade was coming, its official end was still a shock. As an outsider, I worried about my American friends and the countless poor, black, brown, and LGBT+ Americans that will suffer ...
China’s Uphill Battle Fostering Stability in the Horn of Africa
By Lukas Fiala On Monday and Tuesday this week, Ethiopia hosted a China-sponsored Horn of Africa Peace Governance and Development conference – the first of its kind. Taking place at the China-financed African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, the event signalled ...
China’s Horn of Africa Conference Reveals the Limits of Mediation Role
The China-led peace conference for the Horn of Africa was both a big step for China and a bit of a damp squib. The conference, which concluded on Tuesday, was China’s most prominent attempt at promoting its version of developmental peace in Africa since its mediation efforts in South Sudan ...
When it Comes to ICT Training, Africa Differs from Western Critics on Huawei
As U.S. trade tensions with China deteriorate into a struggle over future technological supremacy, Chinese tech companies have become targets. Many Chinese firms faced a sudden ban on buying high-end technological components made in the U.S. This pressure is causing these companies to rethink their global strategies. ...
China Kicks Off HoA Conference With Offer to Mediate Regional Conflicts
China's Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa (HoA), Xue Bing, opened a two-day peace conference in Addis Ababa on Monday with an unexpected offer that he would personally make himself available to mediate some of the conflicts currently roiling the region. “I ...
Will China Bring Stability to the Horn of Africa?
Lukas Fiala Early next week, Ethiopia will host a China-sponsored Horn of Africa peace conference – the first of its kind. Taking place at the China-financed African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, the event will be a key opportunity for Beijing ...
Zambia’s Debt Talks Set to Get Underway But Final Deal Not Expected This Month
After months of delays, all of Zambia's international creditors will finally convene on Thursday to work out the details of how to restructure the country's $17.3 billion of external debt. The inaugural meeting of the official Creditor's Committee, co-chaired by China and France, will ...
Why China Won’t Fill a Development Finance Gap for Gas
By Cecilia Springer and Rishikesh Ram Bhandary At the end of May, Group of Seven (G7) countries committed to end public finance for overseas fossil fuel activities, going beyond their earlier commitment from last year to end such finance for overseas coal ...
Happy Birthday, B3W! We Have Some Questions.
Very few noticed, but June 12 saw an important milestone: the one-year anniversary of the announcement of the Biden administration’s Build Back Better World (B3W) initiative. The plan drew on two kinds of connectivity. First, it was linked with Biden’s ...
Africa’s Position Amidst China’s Dominance of the Continent’s Mobile Phone Sector
By Pamela Adwoa Carslake The mobile handset industry is said to be a top 5 industry in the world, accruing US$522 billion in sales revenue and annual sales of over 6 billion mobile devices according to a document by the Pakistan ...