The China in Africa Podcast

Challenging China's dominance in Africa's tech sector was one of the key takeaways from this month's Europe-Africa summit and a key component of the EU's Global Gateway infrastructure agenda. But it's not going to be easy given the enormous breadth of Chinese technology engagement in Africa that goes back decades. Western governments are going to find it even more difficult to compete in this market given the rapid expansion of Chinese corporate activity in Africa's digital sector. University of Tampere researcher Motolani Agbebi mapped out the scope of that challenge in a new paper published in February on the Council on Foreign Relations website that details Africa's role in China's Digital Silk Road agenda. She joins Eric & Cobus to discuss her findings and explain what she thinks African stakeholders need to do to best take advantage of the brewing geopolitical tech rivalry. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque | @motolani_agbebi Motolani's Paper: China’s Digital Silk Road and Africa’s Technological Future -- https://on.cfr.org/36FJvoU JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Cameroon is just one of a growing number of African countries that is facing a deforestation crisis due in part to the trade in illegal Rosewood. Large organized crime syndicates are felling vast numbers of these prized trees, smuggling them across the border to Nigeria where they are laundered and sent mostly to buyers in China. It's widely known in the industry that most African Rosewood is illegally harvested yet that doesn't discourage Chinese buyers as they look the other way -- which is a blatant violation of the 2019 forestry law. Investigative journalist Christian Locka went into the bush to report how Rosewood timber makes its way from Cameroon's forests, over the border to Nigeria, and is then laundered for export to China. Christian joins Eric & Cobus from Douala in Cameroon to explain more about this lucrative trade and why so little is being done to stop it. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque  Contact The Museba Project: www.themusebaproject.org JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Over the years, Chinese companies in Africa have earned a reputation for not very being good in how they communicate with local stakeholders, particularly with local media and civil society groups. While that remains true for the large state-owned construction and mining companies, it's definitely not the case for a growing number of consumer-facing private companies that now employ sophisticated corporate messaging strategies. The Paris-based, Africa-focused strategic communications agency 35° Nord works with Chinese corporate clients on the continent, both private and SOEs, on public relations, social media outreach as well as crisis communications. Claire Xue, head of the China desk at 35° Nord and consultant Anna An join Eric & Cobus to discuss how Chinese corporate communications in Africa are evolving. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque  JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nigerian Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi acknowledged this week that he will no longer rely on China to fund two major railways and will have now have to look elsewhere for the money. The minister's comments shouldn't come as a big surprise, though, given the plunge in overseas development lending by China's two major policy banks in recent years. China is now largely out of the business of loaning large amounts of money to build major infrastructure projects in Africa and is instead focusing on smaller, more targeted initiatives in the health, digital, power and green energy sectors that have clearer path to profitability. Abuja-based Development Reimagined Policy Analyst Ovigwe Eguegu closely follows Chinese development finance trends in Africa and joins Eric & Cobus from Addis Ababa to discuss what appears to be a new era of China's economic engagement on the continent. SHOW NOTES: The China Africa Project: Q&A: Nigerian Representative Ben Igbakpa Explains Why He Wants to Investigate 20 Years of Chinese Loans by Ovigwe Eguegu -- https://bit.ly/3L9hMMV The Hoover Institution at Stanford University: Comments by Jendayi Fraser and Reuben Lifuka on China's sharp rise in Africa -- https://youtu.be/HfWEMM1eLMc Network 20/20: Comments by Gyude Moore and Jennifer Hillman on Beijing’s Expanding Economic Orbit: Evaluating China’s Belt and Road Initiative -- https://youtu.be/5aMxyz9mULc Spice FM: Comments by Kenya ICT Minister Joe Mucheru on the SGR contract: https://youtu.be/94-E_kVixwU JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque | @ovigweeguegu | @devreimagined JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It's been a frenetic start of the year in Chinese diplomacy in the Middle East. Right after he returned from a five-nation tour of Indian Ocean states, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi hosted half a dozen foreign ministers from Persian Gulf states, Turkey, and the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council. Separately, China is also playing an active role in the ongoing Iran nuclear talks. Now that China is the Persian Gulf's largest energy customer, Beijing has a lot at stake an ensuring the region remains stable. Jonathan Fulton is one of the world's foremost scholars on Sino-Mideast affairs and has been closely Beijing's presence in the region for more than a decade. He joins Eric & Cobus from Abu Dhabi where he's an assistant professor at Zayed University to discuss the latest diplomatic developments and his new book on the topic. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque | @jonathandfulton JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

China-Africa trade smashed a new record in 2021 and surpassed $250 billion. This was a dramatic increase over the $187 billion that the two sides the previous year. But those enhanced trade ties come as security conditions worsen for Chinese stakeholders in a growing number of Africa countries, namely Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Paul Nantulya, a research associate at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies in Washington, D.C. is closely following both trends and joins Eric & Cobus to discuss how China's security and economic interests in Africa are now converging in new ways. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque | @pnantulya | @africaacss JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

China's role in the landmark Congo-Hold Up corruption scandal was relatively small compared to those of other actors that were found to have funneled millions of dollars to former Congolese president Joseph Kabila and his associates. Nonetheless, investigators found that Chinese entities were responsible for at least $55 million in illicit payments connected to the $6 billion Sicomines resource-for-infrastructure deal back in 2007. The Washington, D.C.-based NGO The Sentry was among the lead organizations in the Congo Hold-Up investigation that was based on an unprecedented leak of 3.5 million documents from BGFIBank in Gabon. Two of The Sentry's lead investigators involved with the project, John Dell'Osso and Douglas Gillison join Eric & Cobus to discuss how Chinese companies were implicated in the scandal and the specific role of one man in particular. SHOW NOTES: Read The Sentry's full report: State Capture and Bribery in Congo's Deal of the Century -- https://bit.ly/31W74Ys Photo of Sun Ruiwen, president of China Molybdenum, meeting together with DR Congo President Félix Tshisekedi on December 23, 2021: https://bit.ly/3GvQ9eg JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque | @douglasgillison | @j_dellosso JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is back in Beijing after wrapping up the customary first overseas trip of the year that always begins in Africa. Wang spent almost a week visiting five nations in East Africa and throughout the Indian Ocean where debt, infrastructure and great power rivalry with the U.S. were among the key issues on the agenda. University of Nairobi political science lecturer Oscar Otele closely followed Wang's tour and joins Eric & Cobus to discuss the key highlights, particularly during the Foreign Minister's stop in Kenya. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There was a flurry of Chinese diplomatic activity in Africa this week with Foreign Minister Wang Yi's first overseas trip of the year who went to Eritrea, Kenya, and the Comoros Islands. While eastern Africa and the Indian Ocean are becoming increasingly strategic theaters for Chinese engagement on the continent, in many ways they're still secondary to South Africa's overall importance. South Africa is the main gateway for the bulk of Chinese mineral imports from Africa, it's home to the largest ethnic Chinese population on the continent and serves as an important ideological ally through close ties between the Chinese Communist Party and the ruling African National Congress. Howard University Africa Studies Lecturer Phiwokuhle Mnyandu is among the foremost experts on Sino-SA ties and the author of a recently published book on the topic. Phiowkuhle joins Eric & Cobus from Washington, D.C. to explain why South Africa remains firmly atop Beijing's strategic priorities in Africa. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque | @phiwomnyandu JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join Eric & Cobus for the annual Year in Review/Year Ahead Preview special episode where they each three stories that shaped Africa-China relations in 2021 and one story to watch in the year ahead. Plus, they also discuss the Trevor Noah controversy where the host of the popular Comedy Central program The Daily Show published a riff on China-Africa relations that was riddled with inaccuracies and misinformation. JOIN THE DISCUSSION: CAP on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject Twitter: @ChinaAfrProject | @stadenesque  JOIN US ON PATREON! Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff including our Week in Review report, invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.