Is China Really Interested In Uplifting The African Continent?

China isn’t stopping at South East Asian control only; it has its eye of Africa too. The fossil rich continent is a part of the Chinese strategy of global control.  The media messaging is of economic development, something the continent has been struggling for. But the real reason remains political in nature.

In the past, China has used the money lending tactic to control countries. It has handsomely lent economic loans as a gesture of good trade relations; only to muscle twist such nations into towing its line. It has tried similar strategy at the time of Covid-19 vaccine shortages when smaller South east Asian nations were looking for support in the form of subsidized vaccines or free doses too.

 

The new global messaging is that China proclaims itself to be the leader of "South-South cooperation” as President Xi Jinping claims countries of the economic “South” are bound to a “community of common destiny”.

It’s a new play on words to gain control, sooner or later. China plans to use soft power to gain trust and its control over the African continent. It aims to give Africa what it needs- economic development while promoting its own model of development through the use of soft power strategies. Africa has a double interest for China: it is not only rich in essential natural resources, but is also a key partner in strengthening China's influence in international organizations, according to an expert on African affairs.

On its mineral richness, China has strategically started gaining access to more oil and mining resources. Though this is going completely against the Climate commitment that China continues to avoid.

 

As of now, more than 80 percent of China’s import from Africa consists of oil and raw materials. The Chinese investment in Africa mostly involves acquisition of extraction companies that helps it gain monopoly in the country e.g. in Democratic Republic of Congo, 95 % of country’s cobalt production is under Chinese monopoly. China has not been liked a lot by the world, by the way it treats its people or how it runs its diplomatic business either. So, coming closer to Africa, could also be its way of gaining a place on the table.

 

Indeed, the 54 countries of Africa constitute one- quarter of the UN member states and votes, and thus represent an important political support for China’s diplomacy.