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China’s security playbook in Africa raises promise, and alarms

China’s Global Security Initiative (GSI), launched in 2022 by President Xi Jinping, is increasingly shaping Africa’s security architecture, drawing both support and scrutiny across the continent. According to a new analysis by the Washington-based Africa Center for Strategic Studies, the GSI is rapidly reshaping security partnerships across Africa, embedding Chinese norms into military, policing, and […]

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China expands tariff-free access to African goods

China has announced plans to eliminate tariffs on nearly all imports from 53 African countries with which it maintains diplomatic ties, extending a previous policy that offered zero-tariff treatment to only 33 least-developed African nations. The announcement was made during a ministerial meeting in China’s city of Changsha, as African leaders gathered to review the […]

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China’s zero-tariff plan for African economies raises doubts among experts

Beijing’s recent decision to eliminate tariffs for goods from least developed countries (LDCs) with diplomatic relations with China, including 33 in Africa, has been met with a great deal of skepticism among experts. The decision, announced by President Xi Jinping at the 2024 Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) that was held in Beijing in early […]

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African countries aim to broaden cooperation with China at upcoming FOCAC in Beijing

Political leaders from many African countries and representatives of relevant regional and international organizations will participate in this year’s Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) that will be held in Beijing September 4-6, the Chinese Foreign Ministry has announced. Leaders of FOCAC’s African members and representatives from all around the continent reportedly plan […]

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China’s FM on Africa charm offensive tour calls for Gaza ceasefire

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi has kicked off his inaugural trip of 2024 that takes him to four countries around Africa, focusing on diplomacy, economics, and security issues on the continent. During his first stop in Cairo, the top Chinese diplomat called for a ceasefire in Gaza and the start of the implementation of the […]

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Resource curse: more Africa countries could benefit from China’s new tariff-free policy

China’s recent announcement that it was expanding its tariff-free policy to additional African countries, namely Angola, Gambia, Congo, Madagascar, Mali and Mauritania, may be a catalyst for new opportunities amid criticisms about the trade imbalance, according to experts. The Chinese government announced on 25 December 2023 that it was granting the additional six African states […]

Africa Business Emerging Markets Features Headlines International

China refocuses on food and agriculture in its relations with Africa

China is importing more food products such as avocados, cashews, sesame seeds and chili peppers from Africa, after President Xi Jinping promised to increase non-resource imports from Africa and agriculture is emerging as the new focus of Beijing’s engagement with the continent. In the first two months of this year, Shanghai ports handled more than […]

Asia International

Limits to Japanese ambitions in Africa to weaken China’s influence

Japan has recently announced an ambitious multibillion-dollar program of economic assistance to Africa — pledging to spend $30 billion on the continent and stressing a focus on training African professionals, food production and green growth — in a bid to provide the continent with an alternative to Chinese lending and investment. The recent flurry of […]

Asia Business Headlines International Morocco

Chinese Firms Showcase in Beijing their Investment Projects in Morocco

Several Chinese businessmen have discussed in Beijing with Head of Moroccan Government Saadeddine El Othmani their investment projects set for the North African country and reviewed ways to facilitate their implementation to help create jobs within the frame of a “win-win partnership”. The Chinese entrepreneurs met El Othmani on Monday on the sidelines of the […]

Asia Business Headlines International Morocco

Morocco Underscores in China Relevance of its African Policy

Morocco has called for a tripartite cooperation with China benefiting Africa’s social and economic development, one of the end-goals of the Kingdom’s new African policy. “Morocco is ready to work together with its African and Chinese partners to push forward the continent’s social and economic development,” said Minister Delegate for Africa, Mohcine Jazouli. Speaking at […]