China in Africa

Oscar Kimanuka (The EastAfrican)—Whatever people in the developed world may think about China today, there is no doubt that there is a new sun rising in the East.

To the Americans, China’s exports could gently but surely obliterate the warm glow of their increasingly comfortable lives, never mind the imminent recession.

And by the same token, China’s dazzling glare may threaten to burn away the very foundations of America’s prosperity. Can the US co-exist in harmony with a Chinese economic giant?

To Africans, the story is different. Africa is looking for new opportunities offered by China in terms of aid that has fewer strings attached in exchange for their abundant natural resources.

According to Giovanni Arrighi, an economic sociologist at the Johns Hopkins University, the rise of the East represents an opportunity to escape an international order based on exploitation.

The argument is that a ruling class of capitalists, first in Great Britain, then in the United States, has dominated the world since the Industrial Revolution, "having their wicked hegemonic way with the weak. The riches of the West were created by the oppression of the rest."

From this argument, it is clear that trade between the rich and poor countries is not equal exchange but instead, systematic exploitation of the poor.

It is now believed that an international struggle is being waged for the soul of humanity. If the Chinese triumph, according to Arrighi, "the establishment of the kind of commonwealth of civilisations that Adam Smith envisaged," will be achieved.

In recent years, Europe and the US have been emphasising the promotion of democracy, human rights, and transparency in their relations with poor countries.

China’s aid and trade policies in contrast, continue to be rooted in its own economic interests, which in the case of poor economies typically lie in access to raw materials and markets. Whatever policies the US may be adopting in the developing world, it is reluctant to assume the responsibilities of dominance.

Finally, whatever Africa may be gaining from its renewed interest in China, we should not lose sight of our own interest as Africans. We need to benefit from these relations for the sake of the development of our people, most of whom are living in deplorable conditions.

Oscar Kimanuka is a commentator on social and economic issues based in Kigali.

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