Opinion
What a Packet of Fruit Wrinkles Taught me About China’s Involvement in Africa and the Caribbean Region
However, these “investments” leave China with all the benefits and Africa wanting as suggested in the examples pointed out in Linda Dolan’s Article, ‘A New Colonialism.’ Here, she talks about the high-profile projects and relationships [that] provide evidence for the view that Chinese involvement may not promote long-term development [from the standpoint that] Chinese supported infrastructure projects frequently ignore quality and environmental standards that Western donors now adhere to. As an example, the Chinese-backed Gibe II hydropower project in Ethiopia cost approximately US$500 million, but had its tunnel collapse ten days after its inauguration. China has, nonetheless, moved on to the Gibe III dam, which ignores numerous Ethiopian and international environmental laws and threatens to deprive Lake Turkana, the source of livelihood for half a million Ethiopians, of 85 percent of its annual inflow. Politically, skeptics criticize China’s willingness to continue to trade with and invest in the Sudanese regime. As recently as last week, China hosted President al-Bashir to confirm the two countries’ friendship after the partition of Sudan. In the last decade, China has explained its support for these regimes by adhering to a principled doctrine of non-interference in the domestic affairs of other countries, which avoids the appearance of supporting norms that would justify international intervention in the cases of Tibet or Taiwan.”
So what does this mean for the African countries who deal with China? As pointed out by Linda Dolan, these countries end up with loans going towards infrastructure that are of poor quality and threaten the environment and livelihood of those stakeholders involved with such projects. Furthermore, these countries also end up being responsible for maintaining and cleaning up the mess caused by the shoddy workmanship of these projects, while the countries are left with the debt and damaged environment. Thus like the war profiteers in Iraq in 2003, Chinese companies would end up getting paid for work that is subpar while many of the African countries end up in a financial quagmire due to poor governance and oversight.
Dolan continues: ‘Along with the problems of opaque loans and agreements that favor the Chinese, we also see that China’s “non-interference” into government affairs only serves to undermine the citizens of the African countries that China deals with. Case in point: Sudan and the atrocities committed by the government, using the Janjaweed, to attack its citizens. China has repeatedly blocked any attempts by the UN Security Council to try and halt the continued bloodshed and violence in Sudan. Whatever the reason, China is an accomplice to atrocity.
Furthermore, as pointed out in the article written by Dr. Martyn Davies, How China Is Influencing Africa’s Development, China’s investment strategy in Africa appears to be focused on securing energy and resource assets in order to hedge against rising prices and possibly long-term supply shortages; and on offshore manufacturing process in order to offset rising risk of protectionist sentiment that is becoming more prevalent against “Made in China” products.
When looking at China’s investment strategy in Africa, China is the benefactor of their own benevolence as they end up getting rights to up to half the energy and resource assets needed along with the opportunity to use Africa as beacon to produce all its goods to the world without the stigma associated with their goods. However, Africa is left with a situation similar to that of the Caribbean, as previously mentioned plus ownership of up to half of their own resource assets.
So in the end, what did a packet of Fruit Wrinkles teach me about China’s involvement in both Africa and the Caribbean? Two things: Never give in to your baser instincts because you may end up despising your birthright for a pot of lentil soup. Like the biblical Esau, I despised my Muppet baby for a packet of Fruit Wrinkles. This is what Africa and the Caribbean may be doing as well when they accept these loans and financial aid from China for projects – giving China access to additional markets while Africa and the Caribbean gets additional debt in return. And secondly, fruit Wrinkles leave a bitter after taste in your mouth after they have all been eaten. Debt is the same way. All the money China’s thrown at the Caribbean and Africa in the form of generous low interest loans may have seemed like a sweet deal now, but the thought of having to pay them back after China now controls both your sovereignty and your resources, not so much.
relcock AT thehabarinetwork.com
