In recent years many Western observers frequently criticize that China is a colonial state in Africa where it seizes resources, abuses local workers, attacks African countries’ national industries and damages ecological environments, and so forth. However, Chinese government totally denies this charge, as Pre-Premier Wen Jiabao had said “the cap of neo-colonialism can never be worn on Chinese heads absolutely”.[i] Whatsoever, to scientifically evaluate China’s engagement in Africa should not be based on some typical cases, personal emotion or selective data, but on systemic analysis. It should carefully examine the relationship among China’s behaviors, their influences on Africa and Africa’s responses, by using comprehensive data and scientific approaches. Unfortunately, although there are many articles, reports and books on China in Africa, especially in Western academic and media circles, many of them didn’t give us a comprehensive, systemic, scientific and neutral picture of this. In consideration of this, this paper will address these questions: Is China a colonial power in Africa in the 21^st century? Whether does it facilitates Africa’s independency or not? And what’s the implication of China’s engagement there for the world order? Around these questions, it will theoretically conceptualize the neo-colonialism and the national independency firstly, and then discuss China’s engagement in Africa in trade and investment areas by case studies, and analyze the relations between China’s economic engagement in Africa and Africa’s independency in the second section. Finally, it will theorize the triangular relationships among China, the West and Africa and explain the implication for the fledging world order in Africa.

Features of neo-colonization

The conceptualization of neo-colonialism is of course necessary to analyze whether China’s behavior in Africa in recent decades is colonial engagement or not. There are diversified and different definitions on neo-colonialism since the decolonization happened in 1960s, some core meanings of this terminology are shared by these definitions. Neo-colonialism, different from the colonialism- a transnational and imperial system in which colonizing powers always exploit colonized countries or regions in economic areas directly by political control or by force if necessary, is considered as a new approach by foreign countries to indirectly exploit a country’s economy[i]. As Kwame Nkrumah has concluded, it’s just all of the colonialism only except for the political control by force. Generally, there are some common characteristics of neo-colonialism such as follows.

1. The neo-colonialist imports resources, raw materials and unprocessed products in very low price, and simultaneously exports manufactured goods and daily necessities to colonized regions and countries. This fixed international division of labor can maintain the colonial power’s superiority over the colonized countries (regions) in international markets. The colonized countries and regions as the supplier of rural materials and the consumer of manufactured products are forced to keep a poor and backward economy.

2. The colonized countries’ goods cannot at all compete with those similar goods from the colonial powers whose competitive advantage in price and quality will seriously undermine the traditional or fledging industries of colonized countries. Under this condition, the colonized countries or regions don’t have any other options except for embracing the floods of colonizing power’s goods.

3. Colonized country’s economic relationship with the colonial power is only related to several goods, fields and industries (especially those regarding colonized countries’ economic lifelines), which makes the colonized countries (regions) highly relies on foreign colonists. Once this trade relationship is broken up or the inward investment flow is cut, the colonized countries would quickly fall into serious fiscal crisis and economic recession or even collapse.

4. Due to the political control, cultural penetration and economic exploitation in colonized countries or regions, the colonial power always economically or financially controls those key areas, industries, institutions of the colonized countries and regions. Those most important industries, fields and companies are strictly controlled by colonists. As a result, colonized national economy is in reality under the control of colonial powers. [ii]

Consequently, all behaviors of colonial power in colonized countries or regions give rise to colonized countries’/regions’ highly dependency on colonial power economically politically, with the backwardness of economy.

Colonial system and colonial behavior: Similarities and distinctions

Undoubtedly, the reasons that can explain one country’s backwardness and dependency on foreigners are diverse and complicated, especially in globalized era. So it is hard to verify that a country’s underdevelopment is due to another country’s colonial engagement. In consideration of this, there should be a distinction between colonial system and colonial behavior. Before the decolonization of the world, it’s easy to find which state was colonial power over those colonized countries or regions, and the backwardness of colonized countries or regions were directly due to the specified country’s (countries’) colonization. In other words, in the colonial era, the colonization over one colonized country or region was a systematic project implemented by only one or several country (countries) and all features mentioned above were existed and linked together. Yet in globalized era, the neo-colonization over one country by a powerful state cannot be systematic since in reality any foreign country now cannot comprehensively and firmly control another country’s domestic economic and political systems. In a word, there may be colonial system in global level; nonetheless there isn’t colonial system but only colonial behavior in national level after de-colonization. The colonial behavior has one or several features of neo-colonialism yet cannot individually lead to backwardness of a country. In this sense, in contemporary, no state can be seen as a colonial power that takes systematical approaches that directly cause another country’s back-wardness. Because of this distinction-- colonial system is a imperial project and colonial behavior has only one or several features of the (new) colonialism, in globalized era, whether one country is a colonial power or not can only be verified by its behaviors.

Decolonization and national independency

Without question, a colonized country’s international status from dependency to independency is accompanied with a process of decolonization which made most developing countries liberalized from colonial powers and have realized their sovereign independence and national autonomy, at least on the surface. In consideration of this, this article assumes that equal and diversified economic relations with foreign countries and internal good governance are due to decolonization and generally facilitate national independence. The economic equality in international arena indicates two countries’ economic relations are based on economic sovereignty and free competition, independently deciding national economic activities in international markets. In details to say, it means the goods’ price one side pays to the other or the investment project is:

1. Determined by the international market, or

2. Agreed by both and not implemented by unilateral coerce, and

3. Not be intentionally distorted. Diversification means the fields of trade and investment is not limited within only few sections, natural resources or areas but associated with diversified industries, sections, goods, areas and regions.

According to this, it will use three tools (and comprehensive data) as analytical approach to examine the correlation between China’s economic engagement and Africa’s independence. They are:

1. The structure of Africa’s trade with China;

2. The structure of China’s investment to Africa, and

3. The macro-influence of China’s engagement on Africa’s economic growth, governance and social transformation (for example, employment rate).

Although, China’s connection with Africa has a long history, even can be recalled into about 600 years ago when Zheng he’s fleets arrived at the Indian Ocean’s west coast of today’s Kenya, China’s deep engagement there is from 1950s when decolonization in Africa was broken out. However, the start point of a comprehensive economic engagement should be marked in the first years of the 21^st century when China somehow adjusted its Africa policy from politics-focused one to economy-focused one. According to this, this paper will analyze the China’s economic engagement in Africa in the 21^st century at first.

Trading engagement

Within a decade, Sino-African trade has been soaring from about 10 billion USD in 2000 to remarkable 166 billion USD in 2011. Accordingly, the trade growth between them has been also gradually yet firmly increased. For example, in 2001, the growth rate was only 1.87%, however, in 2011, the growth rate increased to 23.6%. In reality, from 2000 to 2011 the average growth rate reached 20.9%, although the growth in 2009 was a sad case (-17.2%) due to the serious global economic crisis.[i] Because of the fast trade growth, Sino-African trade is increasingly important in China’s total foreign trade, and the weight is much heavier than before. In 2000, the percentage of China-Africa trade volume in China’s total foreign trade is 2.23%, yet after 11 years, the percentage increased to 4.57% (Figure 1). It means their trade relationship is becoming closer and the growth is increasing firmly as well as quickly. Although, China-African trade growth rate and the percentage in China’s total foreign trade are both increasing, the absolute volume is still limited and in a low level. On average, the volume of Sino-African trade per year in 2000 to 2011 is even much less than the trade volume of China with Japan or South Korea in the same years. It indicates that China-African trade relationship somehow is not as important as imagined. Accordingly, although both the growth rate of Sino-African trade as well as the absolute volume increased in recent years, due to its relatively low importance in China’s foreign trade, the Sino-African trade doesn’t obviously influence the growth rate of China’s total foreign trade. Basically, Sino-African trade growth has the similar curve of China’ total foreign trade growth since 2000 (Figure 2), which means when China-African trade is increasing, the China’s trade with other partners is also increasing at the similar speed. Moreover, it should be noted there are remarkable trade imbalance between China-Africa trade relations. Except for 5 years (2001, 2002, 2003, 2007 and 2009), China has great deficit with Africa in other 7 years in period from 2000 to 2011 as shown in Table 1. The fast increase of trade deficit for China is due to more imports from Africa, especially more mineral stones and crude oil’s imports to feed Chinese economic development. Another feature of China-African trading relations is that in recent years China’s biggest partners in Africa somehow are fixed with several countries. South Africa, Angola, Sudan, Egypt and Nigeria are always ranked as top 5 countries of China’s trading partners in 2000 to 2011. In the following words, South Africa, Angola, Zambia and Egypt will be selected to examine China’s trade relations with Africa.

At first glance, it seems China’s engagement in Africa can be considered as an emerging colonial power in this continent; nonetheless, this would be rather a myth than a truth. China’s behavior has some similarity to the colonist’s behaviors if it carelessly examines China’s engagement in Africa. However, this is just a superficial similarity but not the same in nature. In reality, China’s engagement is a promoting factor of de-colonization in Africa, which can facilitate African to enhance their economic and political independence.

The superficial similarity of China’s engagement in Africa to neo-colonialism

According to the conception of neo-colonialism, China looks like a colonial state in Africa, since its activities and behaviors have featured of neo-colonialism. Firstly, one of the primary aims of China’s engagement in Africa is to pursue resources and materials; meanwhile, it exports a great deal of manufactured goods to the continent. For example, in Zambia, China invests in copper, cobalt and chromium mining stones and mainly exports manufactured goods to this country. Generally, China’s great deal of FDI are flowing into those resource-rich countries, and meanwhile, Africa is increasingly becoming an emerging market of China’s manufactured goods. This model of economic relationship between China and some African countries is strongly criticized by Western politicians like the US pre-State Secretary Hilary Clinton who indicated China is just a colonist that only seizes Africa’s materials and resources yet leaves environmental degradation, corruption and unemployment behind this continent. Secondly, many Chinese goods exported to Africa in general have huge superiority over African similar goods, especially the labor-intensive goods such as textile, retails, services and foods, etc. The superiority of Chinese goods over Africa’s is due to relatively high quality and reasonable price. Since China is consider as the center of world manufacture or so-called “world factory” China has big comparative advantage over most developing countries if considering the labors’ skills, their knowledge and profession, good transportation and other well-functioning infrastructures. Thirdly, it seems China’s strongest trading and investing relationship with Africa is mainly restricted within several countries, industries, fields and areas. This model of economic relationship in colonial era had resulted to the emergence of so-called “banana republics” that only exported several low value-added products, non-processed agricultural resources and minerals. In recent decade the China’s imports from Africa fundamentally focus on crude or refined oil, minerals, raw chemical materials, and foods. As the biggest economic partner of South Africa in recent years, around 50% of China’s imports from South Africa are minerals, so are China’s economic relations with Zambia, Angola, Nigeria, and some other resource-rich countries in Africa. Fourthly, the economic influence of China’s active involvement in Africa is increasingly remarkable, which means some large Chinese (state-owned) corpo-rations in Africa has a decisive influence on some countries’ typical industries, and these countries’ development is to some extent relied on China’s trade and investment. For instance, China’s oil corporations became key players in Sudan, which made this country had to open the bids regarding oil exploration for other foreign countries’ corporations in order to balance China’s influence on Sudan’s economic diversification and independence. And finally, China’s activities have caused many negative social and political impacts on Africa, like deterioration of natural environment, abuse of human rights, corruption, non-respect for local culture and self-enclosure in African communities, and so on. Because of some Chinese ignorance on their negative impacts and African local people’s demands and requirements, some violence against Chinese and China’s corporations have happened within recent years. For example, in 2012 one Chinese Manager was killed by local workers in Chambishi, a cooper-rich region in Zambia. Nonetheless, it’s too early to conclude that China is a colonial power in Africa before the whole picture of China’s engagement in this continent is unfolded. In reality, there are many other stories that are hidden in each story mentioned above, and these hidden stories will tell us China is a de-colonizer in Africa rather than a colonial power.

1. Although, China imports materials and resources from Africa and exports manufactured products there, the prices of these goods are agreed by both sides or determined by international market as well, not only decided by China. Namely, the Sino-African trading relationship in price is equal. Even due to the increasing demands of China (and other emerging powers) for materials and resources, the prices of many goods and materials like mineral stones, metals and woods are remarkably rising. Meanwhile, Chinese inexpensive goods exported to Africa not only promote African people’s living standard, but also provide the basic technological and material supports for the fledging development of local industries. Obviously, any inter-national trade based on reasonable price is just a fair business, nothing to do with colonialism or neo-colonialism.

2. Contemporarily, the volume of China’s trade with and investment to Africa is only a little part of Africa’s foreign trade and inward FDI in macro-level. Even if in most individual countries, China’s share is in a low level. So China is far more than a dominant economic power in African countries. For example, even in South Africa, the share of its trade with China only accounts for 13.19% of its total foreign trade in 2011, although China is its biggest trading partner. Of course this share is gradually increasing, but it should be noted in 2011, the share of Sino-Japanese trade (342.8 billion USD) has reached 17.25% of total Japanese foreign trade (1986.8 billion USD).[i]Meanwhile, in general level, the investment to Africa is neither a big share of China’s total outward FDI flows and stocks, nor the biggest or most important inward FDI flows or stocks of African countries. For instance, in 2011, China’s FDI to Africa is 3.17 billion USD, only shared 7.4% of Africa’s total inward FDI (42.65 billion USD)[ii] in the same year. Although in some typical countries (South Africa, Algeria, Nigeria, Zambia, Angola, and Sudan), their inward FDI from China together accounted for more than 50% of China’s total FDI to Africa, the share is not fixed. For instance, if compared to the total inward FDI to South Africa, Zambia and democratic Congo, China’s FDI to these countries in some years are very low, which means in those years China was not the biggest investor for them. Meanwhile, the China’s share in Nigeria and Algeria has never reached a high level (the highest share of China in Nigeria is 6.41% in 2007, and in Algeria, it is 8.78%). Taking Algeria as a case, the total crude oil’s production by Chinese state-owned companies- PetroChina, Sinopec and Sinochem- in Algeria only accounted for 1/10 of that produced by SONATRACH, a state-owned company of Algeria, and even lagged behind some other counterparts from India and Brazil.[iii]In reality, China is not the only actor in Africa, some western countries and emerging countries are more active than China. For instance, although South Africa hosted about 2,000 foreign enterprises that invested in this country in 2012, only 47 were from China (13 enterprises were China’s private companies).[iv] These countries’ activities in Africa are similar, for example, resource-seeking. In reality, the first and second biggest investors in Africa are France and the US. And it should be strengthened that among Asian countries that invested to Africa in 2012, the biggest investor was Malaysia, ahead of China and India. As for FDI stock, China is ranked after France, the US, Britain and Malaysia in global level.[v] In the 10 largest green-field projects in least developed countries (almost all are located in Africa), China’s investment volume only ranked at the 8^th, those primary investors are from India, the UK, the US, Italy and South Africa (Table 8).

With the fast rising of China’s (as well as other emerging states’) influence in Africa since 2000, and meanwhile, in accordance with the special features of China-African economic relationship that’s far beyond the neo-colonialism, the original relations within China (emerging powers), Africa and Western powers are gradually changing, which makes Africa a new game arena for great powers in the world, in this sense, a new world order is emerging in the continent.

New relations between China and Africa

Since 2000 China’s role in Africa has revolutionarily changed mainly from a political investor to an economic investor. From the establishment of New China to 1990s, China always acted in Africa as a donor. It helped the continent with its medical teams, agricultural technicians, and construction workers, etc. Its economic behaviors were not remarkable in that period if compared to the West or the Soviet Union. China’s aid to Africa was the political rather than the economic support to this continent. After the end of 1990s, Beijing kicked off the “Go-global policy”, encouraging China’s firms to invest abroad. After then, especially after 2000s, a large number of China’s FDI flowed into Africa to seek new profitable chances and new markets. In sense of this change, China is like a new comer and new player in Africa, and this change of its roles happened together with the coming of globalization, although China has never left Africa since it built formal relations with it in 1950s. However, the new role that China plays makes it an increasingly important partner of Africa because China’s engagement is based on economic win-win and political equality that China’s leaders always highlight when talking about China-African relationship. According to this, in African minds, China’s image is diverse- a new comer, an old friend and a new power star in international society, which makes China become a confusing and complex player in the continent. Although China is a traditional friend of Africa, now it has developed stronger relations with the Western powers than before as to accelerate its economic modernization and promote technological upgrading, which somehow makes African not confident in Sino-African traditional brother-like relationship, and the brother-like relationship means a solidarity against the Western colonialism and imperialism in period of anti-colonialism. Meanwhile, because of the propaganda of the West, whether China as an economic investor in Africa is different from the Western colonists or not somehow is questionable forsome African. Then for China, Africa is increasingly becoming an important even strategic partner economically. Africa is rising to be a power in the world due to its huge and rich resources and great potential to be an international market, and China can benefit much from Africa’s rising by actively engagement. Meanwhile, after democratization in 1990s, a majority of African country becomes democratic, although it’s somehow superficial, this makes China-African relationship be more complicated than before. For example, China was used to contacting African ruling parties and central governments to strengthen bilateral relations before Africa’s democratization, yet now this approach is not effective to keep China’ interest there and their good bilateral relations. Stimulated by some failed cases in China-African relations, some Chinese even argue the aid to Africa should be reduced. Anyway, Sino-African bilateral relationship is re-shaping from traditional comrade-like relations to two equal partners’ relations. In precious age both benefited from each other politically and now, they benefit economically and meanwhile strategically as well, since both sides can make use of the other side to bargain with the West and other powers, and they have a chance to shape a new world order different from the West-dominated one.

New relations between Africa and the West

The West has been scolded for its previous notorious colonial actions in Africa, and now the Africa-Western relations are still influenced by the colonial legacy. After the de-colonization, Africa was an important continent politically, because on one hand it was one hotbed that both the West and Soviet Union hoped to linked with, and on the other hand, it had typical influence in the UN system which claimed each country had the equal voting rights in the General Assembly and meanwhile developing countries became independent power in the world through non-alignment movement in that time. Because Africa’s weight in the balance of the West’s foreign relations was based on its political power, then once the Cold War ended in 1990s, for the West, Africa became less important since the international political competition was somehow over in the post-Cold War, and economic competition became more outstanding. However, Africa was a poor continent, not a competitive counterpart for the West, and simultaneously the West was confident in the prospects of its relations with Africa since the Soviet Union was collapsed and it seemed the West could control Africa. According to this condition, Africa became a “forgotten continent” in 10 years after the end of the Cold War. Africa-Western relationship was frozen till the coming of China as an ambitious economic investor. Generally, before 2000s the West acted there just as Africa’s unique “protector” and special “partner”, and traditional economic relations were reluctantly maintained- investing mineral stones and oils and selling manufactured goods to African. At the same time, it also engaged in this continent like an international philanthropist by huge financial aid with political conditions. And consequently, Africa was increasingly relied on the West’s aid due to its famous ineffectiveness. In a word, the West and Africa didn’t build an equal relationship when the colonial system was collapsed until a new rhetorical partnership was advocated and strengthened when an EU-African summit was held in Lisbon in 2007. This rhetorically equal “partnership” somehow was established under the pressure from the abruptly active involvement of emerging states, especially China, in Africa since 2000s. For the West, China and other emerging states’ engagement in Africa undoubtedly is a big challenge. They compete with it in many fields- from trade and investment to culture and geopolitical strategy. Namely, it’s the pressure from China and other emerging states pushes the West, especially Europe, the previous colonist in Africa, to build new relationship with Africa. However, for Africa this relational adjustment (in history these two sides’ relations had changed from colonizing-colonized relation to donor-recipient relation after de-colonization) from donor-recipient relation to “equal partnership” hasn’t fundamentally change their relational nature. In reality, the West continuously keeps their “old” relations with Africa through political penetration- attaching special political and economic conditions to its investment and aid projects for Africa, through which Africa’s economy and politics to some extent are still deeply influenced by the West. Additionally, the soft power of the West in Africa has deep-rooted and far-reaching influence, too. As pre-colonized region, the political, economic, social and religious systems of many African countries (especially in Sub-Saharan Africa) are like the copies of their previous Western suzerains’. Accordingly, the unequal relations between the West and Africa are kept well. Nevertheless, it’s the first time that Africa now has the opportunity, the will and the ability to correct this unequal relationship with the West after China (and other emerging states) come to this continent not as pure donor but as a passionate investor different from the West. Then the West will be harder to manage their relationship with Africa if only in its familiar ways as did in the past. So in Africa, the West is facing big challenge from China and other emerging states and at the same time, is challenged by Africa as well, which would fundamentally change Africa-Western relations. While countering China’s different engagement in Africa, a new task to adjust Africa-Western relations to fit for new situation in this continent is now needed in the making for the West.

New relations between China and the West in Africa

In the period of anti-colonialism and anti-hegemony in the last century, China and most African countries stayed in the same camp and united in the United Nations and in other international arenas, to pursue their national independence. Under this condition, the relations between China and the West somehow were absolutely conflicted politically in this continent till the end of the Cold War when both China and the West altered each Africa policy. Nowadays, with the engagement of China in Africa, China and the West re-conflict not politically but economically and even strategically. It’s understandable that China’s swallowing African resources is a potential threat to the West, since in the Western minds, China’s engagement will reduce the potential resource that the West maybe will use in the future. Meanwhile, the West’s economic interests were somehow damaged by the increasing price of raw materials due to China’s engagement and competition. That is, when the West doesn’t change the obsolete idea- Africa is the backyard of raw material supplier of the West- any others’ entering there will be considered as a big challenge and threat to it. Furthermore, they are also conflicted in strategic area. Certainly in Africa the Western soft power is now strong or even stronger than before, however, China’s great success in economic modernization and poverty reduction has attracted many African countries’ attention since they, as developing countries, have similar national conditions and historical experiences to those of China. According to this, some African leaders even claimed their countries should learn from or follow China’s model, although Chinese leaders stated any other country could not copy or follow China’s model. It means the influence of China in Africa is not simply restricted in economic area but also extended to strategic area, which will change long-term Africa-Western relation-ship. In long run, Africa is forced to accept or has to follow the West model- the western-style democratization and liberal economic system. Now China is an alternative for Africa. It indicates the West may fail in aid and investment projects in Africa which always attached political condition, if African countries favor China’s model. Then this will be the first time that Africa has the choice to refuse the Western suggestions and projects. Additionally, China and the West somehow conflict in Africa in economic market. With the enhancement of China’s manufactured goods’ quality, the exports of China to Africa to some extend will narrow the Western production’s market in Africa, especially in electronic and machinery areas. But the conflict and competition between China and the West in Africa is simultaneously followed by the chances of cooperation. Now China’s engagement in fact is benefiting Africa’s economic development and the enlargement of Africa’s consuming markets. As a huge potential market, it will benefit all other economies including those from Western world. Namely, Western countries can benefit, as a free-rider, from China’s engagement in Africa. And meanwhile, China can cooperate with Western institutions and corporations in Africa to enhance its technology, management skill and access to good services for enterprises. And they can realize some reasonable division of labor to maximize their profits and also protect environment in Africa as well, and even cooperate in security under the UN framework to keep Africa’s long stability and peace. Especially, China and the Western counterparts can cooperate in the negotiations with African countries which sometimes use the Sino-Western contradiction in Africa to press both sides and then earn gains.

With China’s increasing engagement with different features from the West in Africa, a new distribution of power and also new bilateral relations among powers in Africa are taking place, based on this, a fledging world economic order seems somehow to be emerging. Previously, Africa was like a hunting ground of those colonialists, yet now it becomes a potential power, at least an important player in its own lands, when dealing with the relations with the rest of the world, due to its rich resources and potential markets which are key factors of other powers’ economic development. It’s the first time that the West’s monopoly control over Africa’s economic destiny is contested by China and other emerging states within this decade, which means the old world economic order- backward or underdeveloped African countries’ economic development and even their destinies were totally relied on the Western countries- is broken out to some degree, and a new order is in the making- the development of developing countries is possible to be realized within developing countries through a new relationship- political equality and win-win approaches. Accordingly, long-term South-North or developing-developed countries’ relations or connections in economic field and then in political and social fields are gradually replaced by a new and also more complicated international relations- African countries and China (plus other emerging countries) as a whole are still somehow relied on the Western markets and technology, and meanwhile, a new cooperation within developing countries are becoming successful, and to some extent the developed countries have to compete with developing countries after gradually losing the monopoly power in Africa. In consideration of the trend- the rise of Africa as a potential power, the increasingly active engagement of China and other emerging states, and the gradually adjustment of Africa-Western relationship- a more equal world economic order addressing win-win and mutual-benefit in Africa can be predictable and expected as well, and meanwhile a new South-South unification and cooperation facilitates de-colonization and developing world’s independency in “post-colonialism” is re-emerging and becoming more possible than before.

The author(s) have not declared any conflict of interests.