After several years of declining funding, the African end of the Belt and Road Initiative seems to be roaring back. The newest Griffith University/Green Development Finance Center data on the Belt and Road Initiative shows that engagement with Africa jumped by 395%, while a few big projects boosted engagement in Nigeria alone more than twelvefold.
These shifts indicate a window of opportunity for African electrification. 60% of Africans still ...
Category: Global South
China Rejects U.S. Commander’s Comments on South American Influence
On Monday, China’s Foreign Ministry rejected comments by the head of the U.S. Southern Command, which oversees South America, that China is exporting authoritarianism to the region. Navy Admiral Alvin Holsley visited Argentina last week for the South American Defense Conference, ...
India’s Modi Visits Ghana en Route to BRICS Summit
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due in Ghana on Wednesday, the first Indian leader to visit the cocoa-rich country in three decades as the Asian nation competes with China and Russia for economic influence in Africa. He is scheduled to hold ...
As U.S. Focus Wavers, Xi Courts the Global South
Chinese President Xi Jinping held separate bilateral meetings with the leaders of Ecuador and Senegal on Friday in what appears to be a concerted effort by Beijing to maintain strong ties with Global South countries, even as major power diplomacy increasingly dominates Beijing's foreign policy agenda.
How Middle Powers Are Navigating the U.S.–China Rivalry
In this new era of surging instability and geopolitical uncertainty, so-called "Middle Power" states are rapidly diversifying their foreign policies to deepen engagement with other countries in the Global South, while reducing their exposure to the U.S. and China.
Chinese Think Tank Says Trump’s Border Wall Now Reaches the Global South
At the start of this month, Donald Trump signed a sweeping travel ban blocking entry to citizens from 12 countries, reviving and expanding a controversial policy first rolled out during his earlier term. But what lies behind this relentless targeting of certain nations?
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
China’s Expanding Copper Influence Forces Strategic Calculations in the Global South
The global copper market is at a pivotal moment, and China sits squarely at its core. In recent weeks, copper prices have slid sharply, rattling commodity markets and dragging down the share prices of major copper mining companies across the globe. This downturn reflects growing investors' ...
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Moscow Visit a Signal to Global South
Chinese President Xi Jinping is visiting Russia from 7 to 10 May. He will be one of the most prominent guests at the May 9 Victory Day parade marking Russia’s victory in World War II. He will also meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and will ...
No More Time to Waste: The Imperative to Strengthen Global South Voice and Representation at the IMF
By Tim Hirschel-Burns and Marina Zucker-Marques The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) governance is increasingly out of step with today’s world. While emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), including China, account for 60 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP), they ...
No More Time to Waste: The Imperative to Strengthen Global South Voice and Representation at the IMF
By Tim Hirschel-Burns and Marina Zucker-Marques The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) governance is increasingly out of step with today’s world. While emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs), including China, account for 60 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP), they ...
Trend Tracker: China’s AI Outreach to the Global South
The Chinese company DeepSeek’s success in building a world-leading artificial intelligence system on inexpensive chips isn’t only shifting tech conversations. AI is an increasingly common theme in China’s wider outreach to the Global South. This week, a Xinhua op-ed framed AI ...
Chinese Export Surge is Destroying Millions of Jobs Across the Global South
From Mexico to Malaysia, countries across the Global South are finding it increasingly difficult to compete with a massive surge of Chinese exports that are undercutting local producers and prompting mass lay-offs. Indonesia's textile and apparel industry lost a quarter a million ...
China’s Geopolitical Blueprint on the Global South, Asia, and World Order: Wang Yi Speaks Out
The world is shifting, and China wants everyone to know where the momentum is coming from. “The wind rises from the South, and the tide comes from the South,” declared Foreign Minister Wang Yi at the Two Sessions press conference on Friday. ...