The article by Alessi and Xu (2015) concentrates on the fast development of China’s economics in the context of its relationships with Africa. The authors describe the country’s current needs and how they are satisfied, examine the criticism over the business practices, and assess the advantages of Sino-African ties.
First and foremost, energy consumption levels are emphasized in the context of economic growth. While coal remains significant, oil is becoming more important: African crude accounts for 23% of China’s imports. The cooperation includes resource-backed development loans and the development of special trade and economic cooperation zones in Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Zambia (Alessi & Xu, 2015). Thus, African countries gain the opportunity to progress.
However, some countries, for instance, Gabon, oppose China’s resource development strategy and complain about poor security standards and unjust business and labor approaches. Chinese companies reportedly scale down prices for African companies and rarely employ local people. What provokes sharp criticism is the impression that China only takes advantage of resources and does not help improve regional economies and communities. Besides, the policy of noninterference introduced in 1996 and promoted as the present-day model of behavior is losing ground. The competition between China and the USA for influence on the continent and their different approaches to implementation prevails (Alessi & Xu, 2015). It is the direct result of the safety crisis and China’s revival.
The authors also draw attention to the benefits. One of them is the high economic growth in Africa, 5.3% and 5.8% in 2011 and 2012. Moreover, China’s work is expected to create investment opportunities in the future. Finally, the authors question whether China will be able to succeed despite the previously mentioned challenges where the Western approach failed.
References
Alessi, C., & Xu, B. (2015). China in Africa. Web.