Author: Eric Olander
Eric Olander is the co-founder of the China Global South Project (CAP), 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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Bloomberg: West African Crude Shipments to China Set to Plunge Next Month by 10 Million Barrels
West African oil exports to China are expected to fall dramatically next month, by as much as 10 million barrels, according to oil traders interviewed by Bloomberg. If this happens (and it is speculation at this point) it would reduce West Africa's monthly volume ...
Shock and Disbelief Over the Government’s Request for Passengers to “Self-Quarantine”
Political cartoonists in Kenya are channeling the public's anger over the government's request to passengers arriving on the China Southern flight from Guangzhou to "self-quarantine" themselves for 14-days. Cartoons like this circulated all weekend on Facebook and Twitter amid growing public ...
Kenya Airways Suspends Employee Who Shot Phone Video of Last Week’s China Southern Arrival in Nairobi
Kenya Airways, which runs the ground staff at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on behalf of the Kenya Airports Authority, announced on Sunday that it is suspending one of its employees, Gire Ali, who shot and posted a phone video of last Wednesday's arrival of the China Southern flight from ...
Confidence Eroding in East African Governments’ Handling of Burgeoning COVID-19 Crisis
Two of East Africa's largest newspapers, The East African and Daily Nation (both incidentally owned by the same Nation Media Group) issued blistering critiques of how the region's governments are handling the worsening COVID-19 crisis. Kenya is a particular flashpoint, where ...
How a Chinese Journalist Covers Africa: A Discussion with CGTN’s Shen Shiwei
China's media influence in Africa is rapidly expanding. Traditional media like CGTN, China Radio International and the China Daily newspaper all have a robust presence on the continent while news content from Xinhua is now increasingly common on African news sites. ...
Three Africa-Themed Podcasts You Really Should Listen to This Weekend
Over the past week, three excellent podcasts have been published that focus on China, Africa, and China-Africa related issues that are definitely worth listening to and even subscribing for future episodes. PODCAST #1: China’s Increasing Engagement with Africa: A ...
Video of University of Nairobi Lecturer Highlights Growing Kenyan Anxiety About Chinese Presence in the Country
A video of University of Nairobi lecturer Dr. Richard Bosire sounding exasperated over being locked out of classrooms in UoN Towers. He thought this was because the Chinese government-run Confucius Institute had purchased two floors of the building.
Scandal, Low Ticket Sales Plague Kenya’s Standard Gauge Railway
Bad news keeps piling up for the multi-billion dollar Chinese-financed and constructed Standard Gauge Railway network, the centerpiece of President Uhuru Kenyatta's ambitious infrastructure development agenda. Ridership and cargo freight volumes are both coming in much lower than expected on several ...
China Southern Resumes Direct Flights to Nairobi Sparking Widespread Outrage Over COVID-19 Risks
239 passengers arrived in Nairobi on Wednesday aboard a China Southern flight from Guangzhou. The flight marks a resumption of the airline's direct route after a 15-day hiatus due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak in China. The plane's arrival sparked widespread ...
Tweet of the Day: It’s Been a Good Week for Huawei in Africa
Just days after Safaricom acting CEO Michael Joseph brushed off U.S. concerns about using Huawei equipment on its new 5G network in Kenya, the Chinese telecom giant also received good press in Nigeria for the company's corporate social responsibility initiatives.
“Washington Can do Better Than China-bashing and Travel Bans”
One week after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrapped up his three-nation African tour, a number of reviews considering the direction of Washington's current foreign policy in Africa are just coming in. There's an emerging consensus among a growing number of policy and media observers that ...
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s Recent Trip to Africa Didn’t Make a Lot of News… And That’s a Good Thing
One of Washington's leading Africa analysts, Judd Devermont at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, published a short Q&A that reflected on U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's recent three-nation African tour that wrapped up last week. Devermont's key ...