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Transcript of Beijing Foreign Policy in West Africa Finale
8/3/2019 Beijing Foreign Policy in West Africa Finale
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BEIJING FOREIGN POLICY IN WEST AFRICA (Yang Jiechi Policy)
Foreign Policy Article: byKingsley
C. Onyenankeya
December 5, 2011 SUNY
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Empire State College
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 1
Contents
Executive Summary
Concept and Assumptions
Methods of Argumentation
Theoretical and Policy Prescriptions
Conclusion
References
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Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 2
Executive Summary
China's increase involvement in West Africa over the past decade is one of the
most significant recent developments in the region. It appears to redirect the
idea of marginalization of West Africa and Africa as a continent, which brings
significant political consequences. Beijing's West Africa interest is part of a
recently more active strategy based on its booming economic growth, the need
to search for a new source of raw materials, and a new source to market its
manufactured goods. Beijing more recent policy practice in West Africa has
been the one of multi-polarity and non-intervention.
As a global demand for energy continues to rise, major economic powerful
nations like China, the United States, the European Union and Japan move to
secure long term energy supplies. Beijing as its economy booms, it is
committed in getting the resources needed for the maintenance of its rapid
economic growth, and is taking the search to close down sources of raw
materials and oil in West Africa and Africa as a continent. As part of an effort
to lock down sources of raw materials, Beijing has turned to West Africa, an
abundant place of raw materials and oil, whose risk and challenges has caused
it to be mostly abandoned and economically overlooked.
Increased aid, debt cancellation, and a recent explosion of trade transactions
with a strategic focus on oil, have proven mutually advantageous to Beijing
and West African states (Africapractice, Isaac idun-Arkhust and James Laing,
p.7). By offering aid without preconditions or strings attached, Beijing has
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presented an alternative to Western conditional aid and gained influence and
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 3
diplomatic support to defend its international interest in the continent.
However, a general relationship differing from past African- Western patterns,
alongside support of authoritarian regimes and governments at the expense of
human rights, make the economic consequence of increased Beijing
involvement in West Africa and Africa as a continent intertwined at best, while
the political outcome will prove to be unsustainable.
China's economy has grown at an average rate of 9 per cent annually since the
last 3 decades and its energy consumption has tripled and outstrips its
domestic energy production (Stephanie Hanson, Council on Foreign Relations,
June 6 2008, p.14). Within the decade from 2000-2011, China's consumption
of aluminum, copper, nickel and iron ore has increased from 15 per cent to 25
per cent and has been growing rapidly. China's industrialization has led to
overproduction and Chinese companies and industries are looking to cultivate
new export markets for its manufactured goods and new foreign sources of
raw material, and more importantly oil.
In search for raw materials and new grounds for export markets, Beijing has
turned to West Africa and Africa in general, which command significant
untapped natural resources, including oil, natural gas, metal ores and cotton.
Most of the world’s resource- dependent economies are in Africa. Beijing is also
seeking alliances with West African countries to enhance its global status in the
world as a newly emerged global player and counter Western influence in world
institutions, such as the United Nations, International Monetary Fund, World
Trade Organization, and the World Bank, etc.
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Beijing seeks to build solidarity with West African governments and to
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 4
showcase itself as a reliable partner between developing countries and
developed countries (Africapractice, Isaac Idun-Arkhurst and James Laing,
p.2). Beijing pledges large enormous amount of aid to West Africa, it also aid
in building infrastructure, and in most cases, in areas where the western
traditional powers have neglected, and it’s doing it with no strings attached,
except the withdrawal and rejection of diplomatic relations with Taiwan
(Africapractice, Isaac Idun-Arkhurst and James Laing, p.2).
In the past, Beijing presence was noted by lavish infrastructure buildings in the
coastal countries of West Africa, Beijing building of huge Olympic style
stadiums were at the apex of Chinese donations to West African countries.
Throughout the past 2 decades, Beijing provided technical assistance to West
African nations, scholarships, and various kind of promotional aid. Before
Beijing political influence never waned in West Africa, during the 1980's though
it was not able to compete of influence with Western countries through
diplomatic aid programs, but non recognition of Taiwan was its main priority. In
the 21st century Beijing returns to West Africa as a significant global player,
with the resources, ready to play the game in all sorts, economically and
politically.
Through diplomacy, trade agreements, large aids, investment deals, debt
forgiveness and infrastructure development with no strings or conditions
attached, except the withdrawal and non recognition of Taiwan, Beijing has
gained considerable amount of leverage and access to West African resources
and consumer markets. Beijing now receives approximately 20 per cent of its
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import from West Africa. Beijing has become a major actor in the energy
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 5
sector in West Africa, which has become the largest producer of oil in the
continent, since Ghana discover its own offshore oil. Nigeria, Ghana and
Equatorial Guinea are the main producer of oil in the region and Beijing has
become main actor in those countries.
Some West African governments, who are angered and dislikes by the
conditional offers and aids imposed on them by the western countries and the
international financial systems, see Beijing as a reliable and non-interfering
alternative partner that offers other sources to development which is critically
needed to West African states. Most of the weakened economies in West Africa
are seen re-emerged because of Beijing economic assistance and demand for
exports of raw materials. There are also, statistical analysis that Beijing
economic commitment is lifting millions of people out from poverty and
subsistence in the last few decades in West Africa.
On the whole, there are concerns for the West Africans populations on the
negative sides of imbalance in economic terms, trade, and market practices.
But weighing generally, on the Beijing presence and policy in West Africa, it is
considered by many as been positive for the continent, but the buck stops with
the West African governments and African governments as a whole. Since
statistically, West African countries see Chinese presence as positive, West
African governments could maximize the benefits of Sino-West African
commitments, but only if they adopted and promoted policies and rules of
engagement to deal and address issues that matters most to them, regarding
its economies, domestic trade, balance trade, labor standards and domestic
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trade policies. As for the western Colonial and traditional powers, it is time to
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 6
acknowledge the change in the rules and styles of the game.
The emergence of China as a major great power reshaped West Africa from the
status-quo placed on it by its colonial West. It is though the time, that Western
nations engage China as global player with powerful economic strength, in
formulating the rules of international economic system and redraw aid
commitments to West African nations to be able to identify which is best for
the West African people and its development. On the other hand, Beijing needs
to redress its policy in the region to enhance and secure its long term strategic
interest in aspects of economy and influence, by promoting stable democratic
reforms, institutional reforms, and in depth long term investments, to promote
sustainability and stability in a side of the world, that is ridden with instability
and conflict, but rich in resources.
Concepts and Assumptions
In combining economic assistance, debt relief, and expanding market access
for West African countries, such as Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea, Guinea Bissau,
Beijing’s commitment is in a way similar to the Western traditional powers. But
Beijing is unique in its way, because, however it significantly depends on its
active involvement through its national companies and corporations. Beijing
also uses its strategy in West Africa to develop the skill of its corporations in an
effort to advance its comparative advantages, gain access to needed sectors,
open new markets abroad for its manufactured goods, create global Chinese
brand and help China to becoming overly dependent on export led
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development. According to Washington Quarterly Summer 2007, the Chinese
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government promotes business ties with West African countries by providing
them with needed information, coordination mechanisms and financial
assistance for Chinese companies and Chinese investors in West Africa. For
example Chinese construction companies operating in West Africa and Africa as
a whole receive export credit for feasibility studies, receive guaranteed loans
support, and exports credit for financing operational cost of their projects.
Beijing encourages national oil companies (NOC's) to increase purchases in
West African markets. Beijing also facilitates the acquisition of oil reserves
abroad through sweetener deals with West African governments (Ian Taylor,
China's new role in Africa, p.5). In Ghana by the first nine months of 2009,
Chinese companies launched 14 projects in Ghana and topped the list of
foreign firms registered in terms of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the
country (Wenran Jiang and Jing Jing, China Brief 2010, p.1). This trend follows
in line with Beijing Commitment in the rest of West Africa. According to the
Ministry of Commerce of the People's Republic of China (PRC), In 2009 Chinese
investment in West Africa and Africa as a whole rose to 77.5 per cent to $875
million from January to October (Ghanabusinessnews.com, p.1).
On December 30, 2009, “The Agreement on Economic and Technical
Cooperation between Beijing and Accra” was signed at the Ghanaian Ministry of
Finance and Economic Planning in Accra Ghana. According to the agreement,
China will provide two concessional financial facilities including a grant and an
interest free loan to the government of Ghana in 2010 (Gh.china-embassy.org,
January1). At the same time, state owned China National Offshore Oil
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Company (CNOOC) made bid for share of U.S based Kosmos Energy assets in
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Ghana Jubile oil field in October 2009 (Chinadaily.net, October 13, 2009).
Ghana together with Nigeria and Guinea is rising in terms of its strategic
economic importance to the energy seeking Beijing, as the recent economic
development in that area of the continent moves to consolidate their
development.
Due to the economic importance of China to the West African countries,
Nigerian Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi said in Beijing on the
September 6, 2011, that Africa's top oil exporter will be converting as much as
10 per cent of its $3.3 billion in foreign reserves from US dollars to Chinese
Yuan (Drew Hinshaw, September, 6 2011). Central Banks use foreign reserves
to manage their own currency value. This recent development in Nigerian
Central Bank policy proves the extent through which Beijing policy influences
West African governments. In the case of Nigeria, Converting 3.3billion to
Chinese Yuan isn’t such a huge sum, not at least for the rich oil exporting
country, but what is enormous, economists say, is the decision of the Central
Bank of Nigeria. Beijing has also acquired 45 per cent stake in Akpo oil field
Nigeria for $2.27 billion (An Africapractice report, Isaac Idun-Arkhust and
James Laing, p.11). In July 2005, Beijing and Nigeria signed an $800 million
crude oil sale agreement setting in motion an annual purchase of oil by Beijing
of 30,000 barrels a day for five years. Much more significant is that Beijing has
won a license to operate four of Nigerian oil blocs, “as part of an incentive to
build a hydro power station” (Princeton Lyman, July 21, 2005 p.2/6). Beyond
this is the China's willingness to takeover privatized oil refinery in Nigeria, a
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money losing investment that no Western company would likely engage.
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In Conakry, Guinean government will soon be signing a $5.8 billion mining deal
with a Chinese state owned fund, In return for digging rights to a plot outside
the capital, Reuter’s reports. China Power Investment would finance the
construction of a coal power plant, deep water port, and a refinery long sought
by the nation's rulers (Drew Hinshaw, September 6 2011). The West African
newest democracy boasts of half of the world’s reserves of bauxite, the key ore
used in aluminum manufacturing. The West African Country has been
hampered by the activities of its past brutal dictators, until having democracy
in 2010. Now the former French colony is looking to redress its lost years by
quickly embracing the economic opportunities from Beijing.
Approximately some 40 per cent of Africa's export to China, are from five West
African countries (Nigeria, Niger, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, and Ghana),
according to the World Bank (WB). But Beijing interest in West Africa and
Africa as a region goes beyond oil, Beijing now ranks as the second highest
trading partner in the region, behind the United States, and ahead of France
and Great Britain. From 2002 to 2003, trade between China and West Africa
doubled and tripled by 2007, expected to reach 73 billion. Much of the growth
was due to increase oil import from Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea and Guinea Bissau.
But Chinese companies also import a large significant of non-oil commodities,
such as timber, copper, and diamonds as, West Africa are truly enriched in
those mineral resources. Beijing recently began to import some West African
manufactured goods, such as processed foods and household consumer goods.
Experts such as Ian Taylor and Stephanie Hanson say that Beijing see West
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Africa as both an excellent market for their low cost consumer goods and an
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area enriched with untapped raw materials (Stephanie Hanson, June 6 2008).
However China's foreign direct investment (FDI) in West Africa and Africa as a
region is still at only 3 percent of China's total FDI, according to the United
Nations report. Experts, such as Ian Taylor and Stephanie Hanson, suggest,
that the need to secure natural resources, whether oil, metal or timber is the
driving force of Beijing foreign policy in West Africa. China's manufacturing
sector has created enormous demand for aluminum, copper, nickel, iron ore,
and oil. In 2005, David Zweig and Bin Jianhai wrote in foreign affairs “that
China has been able to adapt its foreign policy to its domestic development
and manufacturing strategy to an unprecedented level by encouraging state
controlled companies to seek out exploration, resource and supply contracts
with West African states and African countries that produce oil, gas and other
natural resources. At the same time Beijing aggressively courts the
government of those countries with diplomacy, trade deals, debt forgiveness
and aid packages.
Methods of Argumentation
Beijing began seriously pursuing market socialism in the 1970's under the
leadership of Deng Xiaoping. It marked the acceleration of a slow acceptance
of change to capitalist practices as the foundation of the PRC's socioeconomic
development. But Beijing political relationship with West Africa and Africa as a
region goes way back as 1950's, when relations between the two relied on
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mutual ideological struggle against major Western powers (Africapractice,
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Isaac Idun-Arkhurst and James Laing, p.14). China proclaims itself as the
leader of the developing world. Beijing sees itself as a developed and
developing world, and as a result, Beijing is presenting itself to West Africans
as a partner who would understand the challenges of the West African people.
Beijing is presenting itself as a partner who will defend its West African
Counterparts in the international stages, since it possesses the economic
strength and political material to defend its West African interest. Through
Beijing Assistance program, Beijing has weakened the influences of its Asian
rivalry (Japan), both on the international stage and in West Africa. Beijing has
tried and successfully blocks Japan from a permanent membership seat in the
United Nation Security Council (UNSC) (Evan S. Medeiros, p.136). Beijing by
presenting itself as a leader of the developing world, Beijing is promoting the
interest of the West Africa and other developing countries within United
Nations, including adding an African country as a permanent member of the
United Nation Security Council; in return Beijing is winning the support of
countless Africans. Major Western countries like the United States refuse to
deal with some West African countries, such as Equatorial Guinea, for being
corrupt and not respecting human rights, for Beijing is just an opportunity to
fill the void, since the same United States can still be supporting an
authoritarian regime in the gulf such as Saudi Arabia, with little or no human
rights records. Beijing established early relations with West African States,
shortly after West African countries gained independence. In the case of
Ghana, after Ghana established diplomatic relations with China in 1960, Accra
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received the first $12 million concessional loan from China in 1964. In the
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following decades, Ghana received aid from China in various forms, such as
loans, grants, and educational funds. Most loans and funds are related to
infrastructure building in Ghana. Beijing assisted Accra in the construction of
Ghanaian National Theater, the Bui Hydro-Electric Power Dam, the Afafe
Irrigation project, the Dangame East District (Wenran Jiang and Jing Jing,
February 18 2010,p.1) Hospital, the Ghanaian police and Military Barracks, the
Kumasi Youth Center, the Office block of the military of Defense, and the
assistance of rural schools building. Among all these projects, the construction
of Bui Dam, was financed by China Export-Import (EXIM) Bank (Mofep.gov.gh,
September 25 2007, p.1).
Secondly, China's export credit and guaranteed agency is the single largest
Chinese financial commitment to Ghana till date, and has contributed
significantly in the development of the power generation capacity in Ghana
(Mofep.gov.gh, September 25 2007, p.1).
However it is obviously a well known fact to scholars and foreign policy
analyst, that Beijing principal interest in the region is access to its mostly
untapped natural resources. Beijing trade with West Africa and Africa as a
region has risen sharply, from $10 billion in 2003 to $20 billion in 2005 and
rises to tremendously 50 per cent increase in 2005 (Princeton Lyman, July 21,
2005). The Chinese manufactured goods are flooding the West African
markets, much to the concern of local domestic companies and employment
sector in the region. The primary focus is textile industries, where growth in
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Chinese imports has hampered the local domestic companies. According to Ian
Taylor, an expert in the region, African imports from China rose 712%, it jump
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 13
from $895 million in 1996 to 7.3 billion, much at the cost of African companies
who are dying and moving out of business. Since the international pressure in
Africa, has led to the creation of AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act),
which offered incentives for African countries to open their economies and
build free markets. The modification made from AGOA permitted least
developed African and West African countries to employ materials from the
cheapest contractors worldwide. The effect of the AGOA act, was the fact that
foreign global economies took advantage of the initiative to penetrate African
Markets. Later, due to the increasing problem a quota system was introduced
known as MFA (Multi-Fibre Agreement). The MFA allocated export quotas to
low cost developing countries and limiting amount of imports for states whose
domestic textile industries were negatively affected. As a result of MFA
agreement, a system of triangular production was developed by Asian
industries particularly, China, who start to produce its markets in West Africa
and Africa as a region. The result of the triangular production leads to the
collapse of MFA in January 1, 2005, which was blamed to Beijing, because a
much larger part of the fabric in production was actually Chinese. As a result
exports fabric materials from Africa to the European Union and United States
fell.
In Nigeria, low cost imports have largely devastated the textile and other
consumer products industries in the Northern region of Kano and Kaduna (Ian
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Taylor). In these northern Muslim dominated area, which a member of the
parliament, from the northern region laments about the rise in unemployment
in a region mostly underdeveloped and politically fragile. The idea of Nigeria
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 14
getting to compete with China in that sector for now is largely unthinkable. In
Nigerian neighboring country of Ghana, the same phenomenon has been
alarming and leads to the threat of closure in most of the leading industries. In
the oil rich region of Nigeria's Niger Delta, local communities have taken their
anger towards the Chinese companies, they have at sometime attack Chinese
oil workers, and there has also been a bomb attack in Chinese oil companies.
The aggrieved locals have sometime ransacked and kidnapped Chinese
engineers and workers for ransom.
Nevertheless, there have been cases of positive responses particularly from
West African governments, for example, in Ghana, Mr. G.D Boateng, Executive
Secretary at Ghana's Secretariat of the Chinese Funded Bui Dam project was
bullish about Beijing presence: He was quoted as saying “With the Chinese
assistance, old development plans that were jettisoned at the instance of
development partners are now being revived and are being executed at a
much lower costs,” (Isaac Idun-Arkhust and James Laing, April 26 2007, p17).
He went ahead to say that before the Chinese assistance, “the Bui Dam project
had been on the shelf since 1960's. We had expressions of interest from a
number of Western companies in the 1990's and in 2001, but they all fell
through because those companies didn't see the project as bankable, now with
the Chinese assistance the project has gone off the shelf to the ground and
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this time it is an integration that includes the building of a new city around Bui
and the idea came from previous projects in China”. Chinese companies
operating in West Africa and Africa as a region are subsided by Beijing and are
instructed to keep profit margins at a very low rate, sometimes at 3 per cent
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 15
low that is never the case with Western companies operating in Africa who set
their profit margins at 15 per cent. Generally, there are growing satisfaction of
Chinese presence in West Africa and Africa as a region. “To most of the
Africans, as most people in the Western world would say God bless America,
most Africans will say, God bless China”. There is no doubt that increase
competition of assets in West Africa is rising, sometimes through overpayment
for equity positions, which releases more resources for local development
(Isaac Idun-Arkhust and James Laing, April 26, 2007, p17). But on the other-
side, there is a concern that such an overpayment may end up providing “extra
windfalls for corrupt officials instead of benefiting local communities.
Theoretical and Policy Prescriptions
Beijing’s policy and economic expansion in West Africa and Africa as a region,
is causing waves of unrest in the Western world, which see Africa, not only as
their former colonial offshoot but also as their sphere of influence. The Western
concerns about Beijing presence in West Africa ranges from preserving the
normative ideas, such as political freedoms, human rights and fear of
diminishing Western political influences in the region. The Booming Chinese
economy allows Beijing to get back to West Africa in the 21st century able to
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play the game with cash at hand and also the political will to follow it up. But
as the Chinese activities expand in West Africa and Africa as a region, the
reactions from the locals are mixed, though there are negative perceptions of
Chinese activity in West Africa. Beijing has been accused by other powers as
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 16
exercising “irresponsible global leadership” because of its energy
resource interest, particularly oil. But same goes to the United States and
other major powers in exercising their own global leadership. The United
States plays a double standard game when it comes in applying morality in its
leadership role. For example, trying to enforce democracy to some countries,
such as in Belarus or Iraq and supporting authoritarian regimes in the gulf,
such as in Saudi Arabia, is not morality. Beijing has been accused of hiding a
commitment to a non-interfering policy to pursue a predatory foreign policy in
West Africa, grabbing Africa's resources without any “moral Scruples” about
the conflict that plague many countries in the region (africapractice report,
Isaac Idun-Arkhust and James Laing, p.22). There are growing voices in West
Africa that see China as a neo-colonial power that has come to extract African
resources. The Chinese construction companies employ few local workers, and
large number of Chinese workers, that will remit money back to China, all
these to the resentment of most of the local West African populations. Most of
the Chinese export goods that go to West Africa are low quality goods. There
has been trade friction between Beijing and West African nations, because they
cannot compete with China, and as a result, run trade deficit in their dealings
with Beijing. Most of the local merchants and industrialist in West Africa has
gone out of business, because of China, mostly in textile industries due to the
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importation of cheap Chinese goods. There are concerns in the West that
because of Chinese aid practices in West Africa; the traditional Western donors
are losing influence in the region.
Experts such as, Todd Moss, Senior Fellow at Washington-based Center For
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Global Development (CGD) and one of the experts who designed Nigeria's Paris
Club debt relief package, the “Chinese Invasion” is helping to “diversify”
Africa's trade and development partners and to the extent that this promotes
economic development, it is good for Africa, but it may also be “wrecking all
the cooperation that the donors have worked so hard to build on environmental
and governance standards, human rights and transparency initiatives
(africapractice, Isaac Idun and James Laing, p. 23).As Beijing engagement in
West Africa expands, it established a strategy of relying on state-owned
corporations to advance its broad political and strategic interest in the region,
but the strategy is increasingly becoming problematic to Beijing. Beijing
encourages national oil companies (NOC's) to expand its purchases of oil in
West African markets. The ability of Beijing to tell the National Oil Companies
(NOC's) what to do is limited. Beijing lacks a central ministerial agency
overseeing the oil industries (Ian Taylor, China’s new role in Africa, p.6).
Beijing has been incapable of enforcing a geographical division of labor on the
main NOC's (Ian Taylor, China’s new role in Africa, p.6). This development
results in competition and overlapping between the national oil companies
(NOC's). The notable of these companies, are, the China National Petroleum
Corporation (CNPC), the China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec),
and China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC).
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The China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), and China Petroleum and
Chemical Corporation (Sinopec), always compete against each other, such as in
Sudan. The Chinese National Oil Companies view each other as rivals,
competing not only for natural resources, such as oil and gas, but they also vie
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 18
for political supremacy. The more highly assets a company acquires, the more
likely it is to obtain diplomatic and financial support from Beijing for its
subsequent investment (Ian Taylor, China’s new role in Africa, p.10). In this
case the Sinopec and CNPC have more political influence, than CNOOC, though
the inter-firm competition is part of the Western capitalist system but it is
endangering the strategic interest of Beijing in West Africa and African
continent. Beijing has also been constantly accused of paying bribe to secure
its interest. International observers say the way China does business-
particularly its willingness to pay bribes, as documented by Transparency
International and attach no conditions for aid money-undermines local efforts
to increase good governance and international efforts at macroeconomic
reform by institution like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund
(Stephanie Hanson, June 6 2008). At the same time, there are irrational
hostility towards Beijing dealings in West Africa, Chinese trade with West Africa
has become normalized in most ways, in most cases multiple actors are involve
rather than state controlled corporations. Much of West Africa's manufacturing
industries collapsed well before the Chinese appearance, but all is counted
towards Beijing. If West Africa is to move from been dependent economy, it
has to start manufacturing and move from being the exporter of primary
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commodities. Most of the local resentment to Beijing in West Africa is just
“Irrational”. Domestic problems constitute much of West African problems, plus
the huge importation of Chinese goods by West African citizens. Most of the
West African industries have poor organizational procedures, inadequate
management and low level of skill. Ghanaian manufacturers of textiles have to
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 19
face the imposition of an illegal 20%duty by Cote d' Ivoire, a “transit tax”
collected at Benin and extortion by Nigerian authorities (Ian Taylor, China’s
new role in Africa, p.25). Most of the West African industries have poor quality
standards, poor finishing, poor packaging, and inability to meet up export
demands on scheduled time. There are still a lot of challenges facing the West
African government. There are so much institutional failings, bureaucratic
incompetence, and unpredictable policies, such as unpredictable property
rights, ineffectiveness and corrupt judiciary systems. Manufacture goods
imported from China arrives into the West African markets at a very much
lower prices, at much less domestic competition, but Beijing are blamed for it,
instead of blaming the West African governments and its policy makers, for its
failure to adopt the right policy choices.
Conclusion
It is a palpable fact, that recent Chinese engagement in West Africa, is driven
by Beijing desperate need to find natural resources, more especially oil, to be
able to sustain its booming economy, and also create a new market in West
Africa for its manufactured goods. Beijing emergence as one of the West
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African largest trading ally has reshaped the traditional system and attracted
attention of the global world. Beijing recent activities in West Africa, especially
in Nigeria, Ghana, and Guinea Bissau are significant, though there are many
implications beyond the good side of the game. Clearly Beijing from the
extraction of West African raw material and importation of Chinese
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 20
manufactured goods, Beijing has enormous leverage over Western competitors
in African markets, because its value demands, with investment, infrastructure
building, debt forgiveness, and aids, provides a comfortable ground and gives
it access into the West African markets and its resources. Beijing because of its
critical economic interest, political interest, and the establishment of itself as
an emerged super power that will defend West African governments in the
international stage, gave it an overwhelming leverage ahead of Western
traditional powers, who view West Africa and Africa as a region as their colonial
offshoot and their spheres of influence. Beijing has a long term commitment in
its dealings with West African governments, and has through its commitments
nurture a potential market ground for its manufactured goods. West African
natural resources are untapped and its markets are strategically open for
Beijing. Though Chinese economic activities in West Africa has produced mixed
effects and reactions. West African governments are happy that most of their
dying economies are resuscitated by high Beijing demand for their natural
resources exports and large Beijing investments on infrastructure and basic
sectors neglected by Western powers. However there are sections of the local
industries badly affected by the surge of Chinese manufactured goods, such as
textile industries, which as a result, cause unemployment and a decline in local
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domestic made products. Some sections of the population are outrage by the
environmental effects, businesses, and human rights concern. Most of the
Chinese companies, don't employ local domestic workers, in most cases, the
local population are not allow to learn the technicalities needed to sustain the
industries when Beijing left, many employers in Chinese companies are
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 21
Chinese migrant workers that will remit money back to China, all to the
resentment of the local population. Beijing also faces pressure and criticisms
from Western countries, they criticize Beijing for supporting repressive
regimes, then undermining international efforts to bring economic and political
sanity to the region. On the other hand, Beijing aid practices are lifting millions
of West Africans from poverty, and their market activities are creating a
growing middle class, for example in Nigeria, where its economy are growing
sharply, not because of its richness in oil resources, but because of its growing
domestic consumption. The Question is, whether Beijing engagements in West
Africa, for the long term, that can help the region to develop its industries and
human resources or is it going to be like the past colonial activities in West
Africa? This I left for its conscience to examine. Because of Beijing extraction
of West Africa's natural resources, and its heavy trade activities in the region,
it weighs heavily in the region's development. Its investment and resource
exploitation could be an opportunity for the region to accelerate its economic
capacity and develop its human resources and industry, but only if the West
African governments adopt and implement the right policy choices needed for
development. But until then, an over influx of Chinese manufactured goods
and irresponsible extraction of resources could potentially devastate the
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already fragile region and its economies. Generally, majority of West Africans,
believe that Beijing have a positive impact in West African development, but it
is left for the governments to address the negative aspect of the business
practices. As for the traditional Western donors, it is time, to accept the fact
that China has emerged and establish itself as a major player,
Kingsley: Beijing Foreign policy in West Africa 22
with the resources to play the game, so it has to engage Beijing in recreating
the rules of international economic system and review most of Beijing activities
in the region to see if it is good for the development of the region.
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