It is not truly “investing” – it is the worst side of “free trade” with no pretenses of responsibility to Africa’s people.

excerpts:

“And, unlike many western countries, China promises that its aid and investment comes without pre-conditions requiring promises of good governance, a reduction in corruption, or democratization.”

“Sanusha Naidu is a research specialist the Human Sciences Research Council in Durban.
Naidu says, “Last year, a contract awarded to a Chinese consortium, CITIC-ARCE, by Steelmaker Ispat Iskor allowed for several hundred Chinese workers to be brought into South Africa to construct Ispat Iskor’s plant in northern KwaZulu Natal. There are also indications from Sasol, South Africa’s energy company that it would import 2000 qualified artisans mainly from Asia due to domestic shortages in the local economy.

Now this has raised questions about what is the responsibility of South African companies towards addressing South Africa’s unemployment crisis and skills deficiencies. If they see it is easier to get foreign workers to come in, then there will obviously be a backlash. This is happening not only in South Africa but in other parts of Africa as well.”

I’ve been back-and-forth via comments and posts with Chippla and other blog authors over this “China in Africa” phenomena since January and I’ve addressed my own personal guilt trip re: Sino-phobia in my most recent blog post on China.

I (and many other bloggers) remain very skeptical of the PRC’s recent change of heart toward sub-Saharan Africa and that has been clearly described in posts that I have written and posts that are in the works. The Beijing government is subverting and undermining a great deal of hard work put in by Western donor nations, international institutions i.e. the World Bank and the IMF, and the sacrifices made by many African people themselves who have fought hard to combat corruption, graft, and kleptocracy in their respective countries. Enter the Dragon, all deals are off. No need to change anything, especially work on economic reform, good governance, and fair and responsible distribution of state revenues to projects that directly benefit the citizens of these African countries that China has targeted.

To dismiss the methods used by the PRC to acquire favorable business contracts and access to oil and mineral resources in some African nations today as harmless would not only be detrimental to our (the U.S.) own strategic initiatives for sub-Saharan Africa, it would be an act of betrayal to Africa itself, irregardless of what some critics and pundits may think of America’s past with sub-Saharan Africa.

Need an example of what I mean? Clarify Beijing’s Win-Win strategy in the Sudan for me, please! Just how much development aid and economic assistance for the rebuilding of homes and villages and relocation for the millions of IDP’s and refugees from Darfur has the Beijing government committed to the U.N. so far? After all, their (China’s) money, munitions, and military hardware and its voracious appetite for Sudanese oil helped to create and sustain that crisis in Western and Southern Sudan, didn’t it? Non?

Did you notice that after President Hu Jintao’s whirlwind world tour to the U.S., Africa, and the Middle East___ all of a sudden the regime in Khartoum is ready to accept U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur and ready to sign on the dotted line at Abuja? Somebody got read the Riot Act in the past few weeks, no doubt.

I would prefer to see an answer to these questions from a top PRC blogger or a government official who supports the new Beijing strategy for Africa, but I doubt if that will ever happen.

Sorry about the rant Ethan, but this subject just pisses me off, totally.

The full book, Africa in the World Economy, is also online: http://www.fondad.org/publications/africaworld/contents.htm#chapters

China’s official Africa Policy is also online: http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/eng/zxxx/t230615.htm