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In this week's edition of the Emerging Powers News Round-Up, read a comprehensive list of news stories and opinion pieces related to China, India and other emerging powers...

1. China in Africa

CDB grants $1.5 million to African project
China Development Bank (CDB), one of the country's three policy banks, signed an agreement with the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) Saturday, granting the school $1.5 million to further develop its African project in Ghana. "China has invested in Africa in a variety of fields, and its investment has been welcomed by African people and local companies," said CEIBS President Pedro Nueno.
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China Dev Bank looking for investors in its Africa fund: official
China Development Bank (CDB) , a government lender in financing key overseas investment projects, is looking for new fund contributors to its African investment fund, the bank's chief economist said on Saturday. Wang Yuan said the China-Africa Development Fund has fully invested the initial batch of $1 billion, which was contributed solely by CDB. "The Chinese government hopes that the fund will be expanded, and CDB is currently the sole owner of the fund. But we really hope that other institutions will join the fund for equity investments (in Africa)," Wang told reporters.
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Media tour boosts China-Africa links
A group of Chinese business journalists are currently touring Africa to investigate investment opportunities, share lessons from existing Chinese businesses on the continent and strengthen the sense of mutual understanding between African and Asian cultures. Brand South Africa is hosting the group during its final leg of the tour, following visits to Ethiopia, Chad, Algeria, Zambia and Kenya.
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AfrAsia Bank opens initiative to boost China-Africa trade relations
AfrAsia Bank Thursday launched a current accounts set to expand China-Africa business and trade relations. The bank's South Africa chief representative said the account provides clients with the ability to freely conduct foreign exchange transactions involving Renminbi (RMB) and to make trade related payments directly to China.
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Nigeria, China Bilateral Trade Hits $13.3bn
The Nigeria, Chinese bilateral trade relations has hit about $13.3 billion dollars since February, 2011. It is predicted that business between the two countries would continue to grow by over 15 per cent in the coming years. This was disclosed on Wednesday by the National Coordinator and Chief Executive Officer, the Nigeria, China Business Council and Africa, Chief Matthew Uwakwe at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
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China-Africa Development Fund Opens West African Office in Ghana
The China-Africa Development Fund, which has $5 billion available to invest in Africa, opened its West African office in Ghana today as the Asian nation seeks to boost ties on the continent. The office in Ghana’s capital, Accra, is the fourth regional site in Africa, with locations in South Africa, Ethiopia and Zambia, said country director Chu Shuntang.
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If a Chinese national commits a crime, punish him, says envoy
AFTER days of phone calls of accusations and counter-accusations, the Chinese Government has finally broken its silence on its relationship with Zambia, declaring that they are “here to stay in harmony.” The biggest consumer of Zambia’s main export copper also warned “erring” Chinese companies that it would “sternly” deal with them if they “flouted” Zambian laws and abused workers but also called for a stop to “unsubstantiated” accusations against its nationals. The message was carried by the country’s ambassador to Zambia Zhou Yuxiao when he visited the Daily Mail in Lusaka yesterday on a courtesy call.
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China denies abuses in Zambian mines
China on Friday denied abusing workers in Zambian copper mines, after a Human Rights Watch report accused Chinese firms of flouting health and safety laws while demanding up to 18 hours of labour a day. "Regrettably, the relevant contents of the report is not faithful to the truth," the Chinese embassy in Lusaka said in a statement. Four Chinese-run copper mines in Zambia are units of the state-owned China Non-Ferrous Metals Mining Corporation, under the authority of China's highest executive body.
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Chinese labour abuse true – Human Rights Watch
HUMAN Rights Watch has insisted that its report documenting various labour abuses by Chinese-run mines operating in Zambia is accurate and it has since reiterated that the Chinese government and management of the four mines highlighted in the report should take appropriate measures based on the findings of the report.
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2. India in Africa

India, African regional blocs discuss training institutes, projects
Building upon key commitments of its second summit with Africa, India Tuesday discussed the location of training institutes and developmental cooperation with chiefs of leading Regional Economic Communities (RECs). The heads of RECs, known as building blocks of Africa, began their four-day visit here Monday. They met Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur and discussed the entire gamut of India-Africa relationship and steps to take forward key decisions of the second Africa-India Forum Summit in Addis Ababa held in May.
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India beats China to top trading spot with Kenya
India has reclaimed its position as the second largest exporter of goods to Kenya, signalling that it is gaining momentum in the race with China for control of Africa’s fast-growing consumer markets. The value of India’s exports to Kenya rose to Sh97.6 billion or 18.7 per cent of Kenya’s total imports in the first eight months of the year compared to China’s Sh87.2 billion or 16.7 per cent of imports, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS). India has been Kenya’s second largest source of imports for much of the past decade but lost the position to China last year after Beijing deepened its presence in East Africa with mega infrastructure development projects.
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India's Tata Chemicals eyes more Africa investments
Tata Chemicals, part of India's second-largest business group, is eyeing investment opportunities in steel, hotel and manufacturing in Africa to grow its footprint on the continent, a senior executive said on Thursday. In addition to Tata Chemicals' investment in Kenya, where it bought Africa's biggest soda ash producer, Tata Group has invested over $100 million across the continent, including in
Ghana, South Africa, Nigeria and Mozambique among others.
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Africa can offer huge gains to Indian ICT industry: Expert
Africa, which is no more a dark continent, offers huge potential for the Indian Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector as governments of different countries have been vigorously driving towards ICT adoption, an expert today said.
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3. In Other Emerging Powers News

Brazil’s key role in solving Tanzanian power shortage
Brazilian diversified business giant Odebrecht Company Limited ‒ with top global businesses and operations across a wide variety of industries ‒ has shown interest in undertaking the huge Stiegler's Gorge power project in Tanzania’s Rufiji river basin. This was revealed here by the director-general of the Rufiji Basin Development Authority (Rubada) Aloyce Masanja. He told a group of journalists that a team of experts from the company had visited Tanzania in August this year to assess the project, and had concluded that it was viable and easy to implement. The project has the potential to produce 2,100MW of power.
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Brazil eyes strategic partnership with Africa
President Dilma Rousseff is expected to follow her predecessor in boosting Brazil's ties with Africa, a resource-rich continent seen as the last frontier for world capitalism, analysts say. Last month, Rousseff made her first trip to the African continent since taking office in January, visiting South Africa, Mozambique and oil-rich Angola.
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SA, DRC to sign new ‘Grand Inga’ agreement
South African President Jacob Zuma and his Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) counterpart Joseph Kabila will preside over the signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) relating to the so-called ‘Grand Inga’ hydropower project this weekend. South Africa’s Presidency said in a statement that the MoU, which would be signed on November 12 by the energy ministers of the two countries, could open the way for the crafting of a formal treaty. Such a treaty was expected to create the framework for the implementation of the much-anticipated project and would include defined project-execution milestones.
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SA rejects Turkey free trade deal to protect textiles, clothing
THE fragile state of SA’s clothing and textile industry was one of the reasons that informed the Cabinet’s decision to reject Turkey’s proposal for a free trade agreement, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said yesterday. Thousands of jobs have been lost in the past decade in the clothing and textile industries due to competition from Asia, in particular China. "Turkey is, after China, a major producer and manufacturer of clothing and textiles and we wanted to protect our industries, hence the decision we took," Mr Davies said.
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4. Blogs, Opinions, Presentations and Publications

Bharti Airtel: betting bigger in Africa
Airtel, India’s largest and the world’s fifth largest mobile phone operator, has its eyes firmly trained on Africa where it has bumped its investment up by some $491m – that’s 586 per cent – over the past year. The company’s African division has yet to turn a profit but the Indian telecoms giant is clearly placing a large bet on a bright future in a continent where mobile phone use is booming and competition is heating up.
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