China is flexing its muscles as a global superpower...
...and not just where you might expect it
It’s been spending billions of dollars...
...transforming the infrastructure of an entire continent...
...building ever closer bonds
Everybody in the equation wins, Zambia wins, China wins
China has even placed its only overseas military base...
...in Africa
That gain in influence has alarmed China’s rivals
Our competitors clearly seek...
...to convert soft- and hard-power investments into political influence...
...strategic access and military advantage
Just how worried should America and its allies be?
In the 1960s, Zambians were celebrating independence from the British
It was a time of hope and freedom
To open up trade routes, they had to build a new railway line
It was a monumental infrastructure project: the TAZARA Railway
And it was funded by China
It was the most expensive...
...infrastructure financing project that the Chinese had ever done
It was a boost for China’s image and influence on the continent
In the perception of developing countries...
...and countries that were coming out of the colonial experience...
...China was seen as a partner to work with in instances...
...where the West wasn’t interested
TAZARA was only the beginning
By 2022, China had helped lay around 6,000km of railway lines across the continent...
...amongst thousands of other urgently needed infrastructure projects
It has built roads in Mozambique...
...hospitals in the Republic of Congo...
...a dam in Sudan
Since 2007, China has financed more African infrastructure...
...than the next eight overseas lenders combined
But all that investment comes at a price
Much of it is financed by loans
African nations’ total borrowing from China since 2000 is almost $160bn
Angola, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Zambia and Kenya account for half of that borrowing...
...though all but a few countries owe something to China...
...and much of it to state-owned Chinese banks
And there’s more than one way to call in a debt
Africa is a voting bloc of over 50 countries of the United Nations
That is a significant bloc...
...and the Chinese have exploited this
They’ve used this to their advantage as best as possible
In recent years African nations have regularly backed China en masse
In 2020, 53 countries issued a statement supporting China’s crackdown in Hong Kong
Almost half of them were African
Some believe this diplomatic support is driven by the debt these countries owe China...
...and the supposed control this gives it
They have lured African countries into what we call debt trap diplomacy
China has extended leases on critical infrastructure like ports and airports
You have to imagine that if you were a Chinese rival...
...and China was going around the world and getting a significant boost to its influence...
...by providing infrastructure
This narrative that China was actually trying to entrap...
...its partners was a very, very attractive one
It’s a view fuelled not by facts—but suspicion
The terms of many of China’s loans to African nations are shrouded in secrecy
China doesn’t produce reports and documents on how much money it’s lending...
...where the money is going
That kind of transparency is not characteristic of the Chinese system
In the rare cases where researchers have been able to uncover information...
...it’s clear China plays hardball
All revenues from the Entebbe airport in Uganda, for example...
...are used to pay the Chinese lender who helped build it before anyone else
Angola is repaying most of its loans by guaranteeing oil
In 2020, 61% of its oil exports went to China
Whilst China has never tried to use its loans to take control of the infrastructure it’s built...
...it is strict about being repaid in full
Some Western institutions, by contrast, tend to be a little more accommodating
There are more conspicuous signs of China’s growing power on the continent
In 2017, China established its first overseas military base...
...in Djibouti
Staffed by over a thousand personnel, it looks like a direct counter...
...to the presence of America and its allies just a few miles away
And it’s looking to expand
US intelligence agencies believe China wants to build a new base...
...on the other side of the continent—in Equatorial Guinea
China has been arming the continent too
From armoured personnel carriers in the Central African Republic...
...to, it appears, drones in Ethiopia
China is selling military equipment to more sub-Saharan African countries...
...than anyone else
China’s presence in African civil society also continues to grow
And with that presence comes growing influence
63% of Africans think that this is positive
In Ghana, less than half do
My name is Bright Ackwerh and I’m an artist...
...and I’m basically having an exhibition on the streets of Accra
I put these posters up about a month ago
In Ghana, there are claims that China’s political influence...
...keeps anti-Chinese news stories out of the spotlight
Bright makes satirical cartoons—and displays them where everyone can see
We selected this particular site because it’s a very, very popular space
And so visibility is very, very high
Bright’s story starts in 2016
Back then, there was outrage in Ghana against Chinese migrants...
...who were illegally mining gold, a practice known as galamsey
The mining has severely polluted water supplies...
...but the Ghanian government was doing little to stop them
Currently look at where I’m standing
The land has been destroyed
All in the name of gold
As an artist, I thought I could use my voice to speak to the issue
He made this piece
You see the Ghanaian delegation on their knees...
...and the Chinese president pouring out some dirty water to them
I put this painting up on my social media channels...
...and someone from the Chinese embassy saw it...
...and a press conference was held and the Chinese diplomats in the press conference...
...tried to impress on the Ghanaian government to check, literally check the media...
...and check the artworks they claimed was defaming their leaders
It’s not the only example of China exploiting its connections in an attempt to limit criticism
In 2018, a South African journalist had his column taken away...
...after writing about China’s treatment of the Uyghurs
A Chinese company had a 20% stake in the publisher he worked for
Its name? Independent Media
The style of reporting has definitely changed
And a lot of these stories...
...I don’t think they make it to the mass consciousness anymore
Now China is making bolder moves on the African media landscape
Fellow Ghanians my name is Poppa StarTimes
StarTimes, enjoy digital life
StarTimes, a Chinese digital TV operator, has an ambitious vision...
...to give millions of Africans access to satellite television...
...distributing its hardware across the continent
This deal has been one of the very, very controversial ones...
...especially regarding how much influence StarTimes is going to have...
...with regards to what is seen, what is not seen on our TVs...
...and how much that goes on to dictate how people largely see the Chinese here
I think it’s an issue that borders on our democracy...
...and perhaps even our security as a country
In just over a decade, StarTimes has become one of the leading digital TV operators...
...on the continent...
...with 27m online users
Its service carries hundreds of African channels...
...affording it increasing control of the digital airwaves
While StarTimes develops Africa’s broadcast infrastructure...
...another Chinese company is transforming its telecoms...
...although perhaps not its advertising
Thanks
Africans have largely welcomed Huawei...
...and its development of the continent’s 4G internet network
As far as China is concerned...
...what we saw for mining companies...
...what we saw for construction companies, we’re seeing the exact same thing...
...now for tech
Financing undersea cables for digital infrastructure
Transsion has the largest share of any phone manufacturer in Africa
There’s the fear that the Chinese...
...might use the construction of the telecom systems to spy on African governments...
...and as an extension spy on Western governments...
...that are doing business with African governments
I think that concern is legitimate
But I think in a place where the options aren’t as many or as price-competitive...
...I think the Chinese will continue to play a very big role
The seeds China planted in Africa decades ago have spread deep roots
Today, Chinese lending may be slowing...
...but its power and influence over society and politics on the continent...
...will continue to grow
Western concerns are inevitable—and understandable
But all too frequently, Western policymakers forget that African leaders...
...and people aren’t just bystanders
This idea that Africans are sort of bamboozled and sort of tricked...
...into accepting a deal that is actually not working for them...
...infantilises Africans and somehow they need Westerners...
...to come and defend them from the shifty and tricky Chinese
Rather than worrying about what China is up to in Africa...
...perhaps Western governments should spend more of their time...
...thinking about their own relationships...
...on the vast and vital continent
There has to be a reassessment...
...of how the West sees Africa and Africa’s place in the world
Because as far as the Chinese are concerned...
...they think Africa is going to play an important role in the world...
...and they should be active in Africa
One hopes that the West...
...can adopt the same attitude and not simply pay attention to Africa...
...because it is a target of Chinese influence
Hi, I’m Gady Epstein, journalist at The Economist
My colleague John McDermott and I recently wrote a special report on China in Africa
You can read that by clicking the link and don’t forget to subscribe