Country: China
China Sends Medical Teams to Africa as Part of New, Stepped-up Aid Push
China is boosting its COVID-19 aid efforts in Africa by sending medical teams to various countries and also connecting local health providers across the continent with infectious disease experts back in China. The deployment of medical personnel to countries like Algeria and, soon, Nigeria, is part of ...
Malawian Farmers Need More Than Just Training to Boost Crop Yields
Drive 35km south from Salima town, in the central region of Malawi you will see a signpost on the side of the road that reads “China Aid Malawi Agriculture Technology Development Centre”. And then you drive another 500 meters from ...
China Says “Mission Accomplished” in COVID-19 Fight and Wants African Countries to Follow its Example
The Chinese propaganda machine in Africa is cranked all the way up. Newspapers, radio, TV, Twitter, Facebook, you name it, the Chinese are there with a big bold message: "WE DEFEATED COVID-19! WE'RE HELPING AFRICA! NOW SUCK IT AMERICA!" OK, that's somewhat interpretive, but you get the ...
China Adds Paid Media to its Already Formidable Propaganda Arsenal in Africa
China added yet another channel to its propaganda media distribution network in Africa with paid editorial content in South Africa's leading financial newspaper Business Day. While paid Chinese editorial inserts are nothing new around the world (China Daily famously pays the New York Times, ...
With an Eye on China, South Africa Keeps Ports and Fishing Industry Open During Lockdown
While most South Africans are required to stay indoors during the ongoing 21-day lockdown to combat the COVID-19 outbreak, fishermen and dock-workers are still on the job. Both the seafood industry and the country's ports were deemed vital to the national economy and permitted to ...
Ambassador Lin Songtian’s Recall Signals Shifts Ahead in China-Africa Relationship
The sudden recall from South Africa of Chinese ambassador Lin Songtian was initially interpreted as being a demotion. But the contrary appears to be true – it now looks as though his deft use of Twitter has propelled him into another role: A combatant in the growing ...
Africans Worry About Quality of Donated Chinese COVID-19 Aid Following Reports of Defective Masks in Europe
Earlier this week I wrote a story about the reputational risks associated with China's so-called "Mask Diplomacy" initiative where it's donating millions of PPE to countries around the world. The basic premise of the story is that if everything goes well, then China wins, but ...
As South Africans Begin Their Lockdown Period, Compatriots Back in Wuhan Offer Some Advice on How to Cope
Now that the 114 South Africans who were evacuated from Wuhan last month have been cleared and allowed to return home, Eyewitness News interviewed a number of students and other expatriates who stayed behind in China to find out how they're coping with the difficulties of daily ...
Rebound in Chinese Manufacturing Provides a Small, Badly Needed Boost to African Oil Prices
New data confirming that China's manufacturing sector is slowly coming back to life helped to give a badly needed boost to African commodity and currency prices on Tuesday. China's Purchasing Managers Index, a key metric that measures factory activity, jumped to ...
China’s Not Getting Its Money Back from Africa Any Time Soon, So Why Not Take the Lead in Debt Relief?
As economic conditions worsen across the continent, it's becoming increasingly evident that African governments will not be able to service the tens of billions of dollars in debt they've taken on over the past decade. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and ...