Today is a public holiday in South Africa – Human Rights Day. There’s a certain irony in spending the day focusing on China’s President Xi Jinping’s visit to Vladimir Putin, knee-deep in a human rights disaster.
What one makes of the Ukraine crisis increasingly maps on where one lives. This is made clear by a remarkable new set of polling data recently published by the European Council on Foreign Relations ...
Country: Kenya
Reporting Tips for African Journalists Covering China
Reporting on China is difficult even for the most experienced journalist who's spent years living there and speaks the language. So, it's not surprising that reporters in Africa who've had limited exposure to the country often struggle to cover China-related news. ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Xi Bets on Global South in Moscow
Controversial China Square Shopping Mall Re-Opens in Nairobi, Prompting Heated Debate About Chinese Imports
Nearly two weeks after being shuttered due to protests from competing traders, China Square, a Nairobi shop selling inexpensive Chinese imports, is back in business. This follows talks between the Kenyan authorities and the local Chinese chamber of commerce. It seems that ...
Uganda is the Latest Stop for High-Level CPC Delegation Touring East Africa
While U.S. lawmakers see themselves in an “existential struggle” with the Communist Party of China (CPC), Party officials are getting a considerably warmer reception in Africa. Li Mingxiang, the Vice Minister of the International Department of the CPC’s Central Committee, met with ...
Kenyan Merchants and Consumers Face Off Over Chinese Imports
Kenyan traders staged a street protest against Chinese competitors they say are undercutting them. This follows the targeting of China Square by Trade Secretary Moses Kuria. The popular new Chinese-run store offers imported products at prices 50% lower than traders.
Top Chinese Communist Party Official Visits Ruling Party Leaders in Kenya, Tanzania
In-person party-to-party exchanges between Communist Party of China (CPC) officials and African counterparts are ramping up again. Li Mingxiang, the Vice Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee, recently visited Kenya and Tanzania. The visit was ostensibly aimed at ...
Kenya’s Ambassador to China Leaves Unexpectedly
Kenya's outgoing ambassador to China, Mary Muthoni, is leaving her post after only ten months on the job, far less than her predecessor, who spent three years in Beijing. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Nairobi did not explain what prompted ...
The Role of Chinese Solar Technology in Africa’s Just Energy Transition
China is by far the world's dominant producer of solar power technology which is becoming increasingly popular in places like Africa that are under mounting pressure to transition from reliance on fossil fuels to new, greener renewable sources of energy.
China Blocked Kenya From Getting Competitive Bids to Build Costly Railway, Supreme Court Told
Kenya’s Supreme Court hearings into the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) deal are revealing a deal tainted by collusion between Chinese and Kenyan actors. The account emerging from testimony shows that the deal defied oversight from the start. COMPETITIVE BIDDING: Financing depended on China ...
Solar Power to the People
By Sophie Mbugua, Wesley Langat The second instalment of this two-part series visits the Garissa solar power plant in eastern Kenya to explore the role of renewables in the energy transition. Heading north from the ...
Hannah Ryder on What to Expect This Year in China-Africa Relations
Qin Gang is carrying on a 33-year-old tradition by making Africa the first official visit of the new year for China's foreign minister. Qin took office just two weeks ago and is new to African affairs, so this week's five-nation tour ...
How Africa-China Studies Exploded Since 2012
The SSRC report is its first mapping of the Africa-China field since 2012 and shows the field’s rapid expansion. Ten years ago, it found three key subfields in Africa-China studies: trade and aid; the role of multilateral institutions, and migration. By ...