Each country must exercise agency to fully capture the benefits of the BRI. So far, Nigeria hasn’t.
By Tola Amusan
China’s presence in Africa has sparked widespread debate about whether Beijing is a development partner or a new neocolonizer. For the most part, such a debate has left out the role African nations themselves play in this relationship.
Such a relationship is essential for both sides. African economies receive China investments and aid, exemplified by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). At the same time, China gets access to crucial resources, export markets, and international support for issues the Chinese regard as sensitive, including the One China policy, human rights violations in Xinjiang, and suppression of democratic institutions in Hong Kong. However, the relationship between China and any single African nation is severely unbalanced in favor of Beijing.
China has been the preferred partner for many African nations due to its deep pockets, “non-interference” principle, and rhetoric of its benign intentions. This has been exemplified by China’s 2021 Africa White Paper, which claimed that Beijing’s goal on the continent is “giving more and taking less, giving before taking, and giving without asking for something in return. It [China] welcomes African countries aboard the express train of China’s development with open arms.”
GUEST AUTHOR
Tola Amusan
Tola Amusan is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Otago, New Zealand. His research focuses on Chinese geoeconomics, grand strategy, and international political economy
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