Author: Eric Olander
Eric Olander is the co-founder of the China Global South Project, an independent, non-partisan media initiative dedicated to exploring every facet of China’s engagement in Africa. Eric is a fluent Mandarin-speaker and a longtime China-watcher with more than 25 years of journalism experience at many of the world’s leading media companies, including CNN, the BBC, and FRANCE24, among others. He received his undergraduate degree in East African History from the University of California at Berkeley and holds a master’s degree in Chinese Public Affairs from the University of Hong Kong.
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White House Official Blames China for the Failures of the G20’s DSSI
The White House's point person on G7 and G20 affairs, Daleep Singh, singled out China for the failures of the G20's Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI). "The DSSI and the Common Framework is not impactful enough right now," said Singh during an online discussion ...
With an Eye on China, Japanese Foreign Minister Promises More Vaccines and Infrastructure Development in Africa
The Japanese government will play a more prominent role in delivering badly-needed aid and infrastructure, according to Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu (photo). Motegi addressed the issue on Tuesday following a lunch with fellow G20 foreign ministers in Italy. He added that Tokyo ...
The Battle of Perceptions Around Tanzania’s Bagamoyo Port Expansion
This week's surprise announcement by Tanzanian President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s that she is resuscitating negotiations with China and other stakeholders about a multibillion-dollar expansion of the Port of Bagamoyo is generating a lot of excitement and a desire among some (most likely in the government) to set ...
eSwatini Could Soon Be in Play
Troops are out on the streets of the tiny southern African kingdom of eSwatini in an effort to quell anti-monarchy protests that look like they could precipitate the fall of King Mswati III. The precise whereabouts of the King are unknown at ...
ICBC Bails on Financing $3 Billion Sengwa Coal Power Plant in Zimbabwe
Environmental groups in Zimbabwe are celebrating the news that China's largest bank, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), has decided not to fund the controversial $3 billion Sengwa coal-fired power plant. This a milestone decision since ...
In a Contentious G20 Meeting, Foreign Ministers Exchange Jabs About Jabs
Most of the foreign and development ministers from the Group of 20 gathered in Matera, Italy on Tuesday for the organization's first in-person meeting since 2019. China and Russia, however, were among the few who were noticeably absent from the forum. ...
Leading Development Experts Try to Decipher the B3W and Whether It Can Present a Viable Alternative to China’s BRI
There's been a lot of discussion since the Group of 7 countries announced the creation of the new Build Back Better World (B3W) initiative. It is nominally intended to help developing countries build badly-needed infrastructure. But B3W also includes an underlying political objective: presenting an alternative, some ...
If the U.S. is Going to Challenge China in the Infrastructure Space, It Will Have to First Overcome a Lot of Skepticism in the Global South
The Biden administration has made it clear that it wants to directly challenge China's dominance in the Global South in both infrastructure development and vaccine distribution. In addition to facing a formidable competitor who has a significant head start in both areas, the U.S. will also have ...
When It Comes To Mining, Africa and Australia Are the Primary Sources of Key Minerals and Metals for China
China may be trying to transition to a services-led high technology economy that doesn't rely as much on manufacturing but that shift will take years. In the meantime, Chinese factories still need to rely on vast amounts of minerals, metals, and other mining products to bolster their ...
CCP Awards Highest Honor to Veteran Diplomat Who Designed Chinese Policy in Africa
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) awarded its highest honor to veteran diplomat Liu Guijin for his four decades of diplomatic work in Africa. In his role as CCP General Secretary, Xi Jinping on Tuesday gave Liu the Order of July the First medal.
The Diplomat’s Shannon Tiezzi on China and the Global South
While China's ties with Europe, the U.S., Japan, and other wealthy northern countries steadily worsen, Beijing is leaning harder on its relations with states in the Global South. The importance of those ties was on full display over the past week ...
U.S. Leaders Now Seem to Think They’re Finally Well Positioned to Take on China’s Belt & Road
"The Build Back Better World Partnership Could Finally Break the Belt and Road" screamed the headline on the Foreign Policy website today, giving voice to the newfound sense of confidence in the DC policy universe that after years of flailing, the U.S. is finally in a space ...