COVID-19: Will Africa rethink relations with China?
COVID-19: Will Africa rethink relations with China?
WRITTEN BY NIRANJAN MARJANI
24 May 2020
As the world faces the common challenge of COVID-19, several key challenges have arisen within this international crisis. Racism towards certain demographics is one such challenge that has been a hallmark of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is also one of those challenges that extends beyond this immediate crisis.
Relations between China and Africa are experiencing tensions because of the outbreak, in which policy failures have been exposed as a result of managing the COVID-19 crisis. While China-Africa relations have experienced friction due to China's investment in infrastructure projects in Africa, the issue of racism has proven to be an important factor in China’s relations with the African continent.
African citizens in China accuse authorities of racism
Around 16,000 African citizens live in the city of Guangzhou in the Chinese province of Guangdong. After the COVID-19 outbreak, Africans living in China, especially Guangzhou, accused the Chinese authorities of undertaking acts of discrimination. Various incidents have been reported in Guangzhou such as compulsory testing of Africans, eviction from homes, quarantining without checking travel history, etc.
This treatment of Africans by the Chinese has resulted in a strong response from African countries in which Chinese ambassadors were summoned and protests arose. The issue of racism presents challenges at different levels. Racism in any form must be unacceptable, but with reference to COVID-19, it is important to face this crisis together. The discriminatory approach makes the challenge of COVID-19 more difficult. Furthermore, incidents of racial discrimination against Africans will likely have important ramifications for bilateral ties beyond the current crisis.
Will it affect relations between China and Africa?
The issue of racial discrimination must be seen as a major event in a series of incidents between China and Africa that have caused friction between the two sides. China's outreach to the Africa Union through Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) projects has long been a concern for several African countries. It is important to consider China's investments in Africa and the reason for wariness of African governments on this subject.
China is Africa's largest economic partner. China's commitment to Africa has been mainly in trade and infrastructure projects. In both areas, China's participation is greater than that of other countries. China has grown from a small investor to a major economic partner in Africa over a period of two decades. China has disbursed more than $143 billion in loans to African countries.
However, China's loans for infrastructure projects have become a debt trap for most African countries. By financing infrastructure projects, China has increased its reach in Africa. Debt trap diplomacy has increased the risk of China taking over key infrastructure facilities in Africa. This trend has been observed previously in the case of the Gwadar port in Pakistan and the Hambantota port in Sri Lanka. The port of Mombasa in Kenya is also at risk of being taken over by China, as the debt burden on Kenya is increasing. Similarly, China's debt to Djibouti has caused the former to establish a military base in the latter.
While many African countries have accepted loans from China, Tanzania has shown some resistance against this trend. Tanzania recently cancelled a $10 billion loan from China declaring that the terms of the loan are unacceptable.
With regard to China, incidents against African citizens are an addition to the already growing problems facing Beijing and its foreign policy. China has been facing a widespread sustained backlash from the world since the COVID-19 outbreak first erupted onto the world stage in January. China has been accused of first hiding the outbreak and then failing to take preventive measures to stop the spread. China, too, has rejected charges that the coronavirus originated there. However, the biggest setback for China's diplomacy has been faulty kits and medical equipment. China had provided medical aid to several countries, including those in Africa. However, most countries returned most of the equipment as it was found to be defective. China's attempts at gestures of goodwill during the COVID-19 crisis have not worked in its favour.
As a result of COVID-19, China's manufacturing units and supply chains have been affected. This has been reflected in China's trade with Africa falling by 14% in the first quarter of 2020.
There has been unease in China-Africa relations for a long time. Racism should not be seen as a separate problem in China-Africa relations. Debt trap diplomacy has been a major problem, and Africa's over-reliance on China as an economic partner has had its downsides.
Africa needs to confront the Communist Party on the issue of racism towards its citizens within China. The African Union also needs to engage more with other countries to reduce dependence on China’s imports. These fault lines in relations between China and Africa existed before the COVID-19 pandemic, but racism could be the trigger that Africa needed to relaunch its relations with China, which would not only address bilateral financial and infrastructural affairs, but more importantly the dignity of the continent’s citizenry.
DISCLAIMER: All views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent that of the 9DASHLINE.com platform.
Author biography
Niranjan Marjani is an Independent Journalist and Researcher based in Vadodara. His areas of interest are India’s foreign policy, international relations and geopolitics. He writes articles for various national and international publications. His articles mostly focus on the strategic angle of international politics. This article was first published on Siglo XXI and has been republished with the permission of the editor. Image credit: Government/ZA/Flickr.