The Big Chill

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken gives a speech on US Africa Policy at the Economic Community of West African States in Abuja, Nigeria, on November 19, 2021. Blinken is on a five day trip to Kenya, Nigeria, and Senegal. Andrew Harnik / POOL / AFP

Over the last few years, we’ve seen increasing hand-wringing in Western capitals about how the money China is spending in the Global South translates into direct political influence. This week research was published that quantifies the issue.

A new report by Foreign Policy Research Institute tracked how increased Chinese spending (both loans and foreign direct investment) in African countries aligns with those countries’ voting in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The report finds a clear pattern: from 2001 to 2018, they found an 80% increase in alignment between African countries and China as expressed by UNGA voting.

  • Get a daily email packed with the latest China-Africa news and analysis.
  • Read exclusive insights on the key trends shaping China-Africa relations.
  • Full access to the News Feed that provides daily updates on Chinese engagement in Africa and throughout the Global South.

China, Africa and the Global South... find out what’s happening.

Subscribe today for unlimited access.

OR

Already a subscriber? Log in Click Here to Learn More
by Cobus van Staden

Most Read

1
Developing Countries’ Debt Servicing Costs to China Are Significant, but Nowhere Near as Much as Other Creditors
2 Chinese Military Fans Discuss Why Indonesia Bought Rafale Instead of J-10C
3
Chinese Cargo Planes Secretly Ferrying Supplies to Iran, Claim Online Sleuths
4
Indonesia Goes Nuclear, Taps China and Russia for Modular Reactors
5
Thailand in Last-Minute U.S. Talks as 36% Tariff Looms
6 Trump’s Contradictory Iran Strategy Leaves U.S. Weaker After War’s End, Says Chinese Commentator

You Might Like

While the U.S. Gets Bogged Down in the Persian Gulf, China Pushes on With its African Diplomacy

Getting Africa on the agenda in Washington, D.C. has never been easy, but now it’ll be near impossible as America’s senior foreign policy leaders become consumed managing the burgeoning crisis in Iran, Iraq ...

Reflections on a Week in Washington

I’m on my way back to Asia after having spent a fascinating week in Washington, D.C. meeting with key stakeholders in government, think tanks and NGOs who are all engaged in U.S. foreign ...

African Governments Now Have to Worry About Becoming Collateral Damage in the Rapidly Escalating U.S.-China Feud Over COVID-19

Just as every African government is now contending with the terrifying prospect of a deadly viral outbreak while scrambling to deal with deteriorating economic conditions at home, policymakers also have to confront the ...

WHO Fight With the U.S. Highlights Why Africa is So Important to China

African leaders are rallying to the defense of World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus following Tuesday’s broadside attack from U.S. President Donald Trump against the health body for failing to ...

What is The China-Global South Project?

Independent

The China-Global South Project is passionately independent, non-partisan and does not advocate for any country, company or culture.

News

A carefully curated selection of the day’s most important China-Global South stories. Updated 24 hours a day by human editors. No bots, no algorithms.

Analysis

Diverse, often unconventional insights from scholars, analysts, journalists and a variety of stakeholders in the China-Global South discourse.

Networking

A unique professional network of China-Africa scholars, analysts, journalists and other practioners from around the world.

More about CGSP