China now a major player in the African aid business

China has spent an estimated $400 billion on foreign aid and development since 2000, making it one of the largest donor countries in the world. Much of that money has been directed at Africa, home to seven of the top ten recipient countries of Chinese financial assistance. Until this year, China’s aid programs were handled by the Ministry of Commerce, but that will soon change when Beijing launches a new international development cooperation agency similar to donor agencies in the United States, France, and Britain.

The launch of China’s new aid agency coincides with the rollout of Beijing’s ambitious global trade agenda known as the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). Although only a handful of African countries are currently part of the BRI, it is widely expected that Chinese president Xi Jinping will include the entire continent in the BRI plan when he meets with African leaders in September at the upcoming Forum on China-Africa Cooperation summit in Beijing. If this does happen, then it’s likely that even more Chinese aid and development funds will be available in Africa.

The politics of aid in Africa are rapidly changing. The United States and Europe are under considerable political and budgetary pressure to curtail their assistance programs, while China is now emerging as a big player in the development sector on the continent. But don’t expect China to play by the same rules as legacy donors warns longtime aid expert Shantha Bloemen who spent more than 20 years working at UNICEF in Africa and Asia.

Shantha joins Eric and Cobus to discuss China’s new aid agenda in Africa and how entire philosophy about aid & development is radically different from that of Western countries and international non-governmental organizations like the World Bank and IMF.

Join the discussion. Are you concerned about China’s surging influence in the African aid space or do you think it’s time for a change of mindset in how African recipient countries interact with their donor partners? Let us know what you think.

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Twitter: @eolander | @stadenesque | @shanthabloemen

LinkedIn: Cobus van Staden | Shanta Bloemen

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