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The Dragon's Gift: The Real Story of China in Africa
Is China a rogue donor, as some media pundits suggest? Or is China helping the developing world pave a pathway out of poverty, as the Chinese claim? In the last few years, China's aid program has leapt out of the shadows. Media reports about huge aid packages, support for pariah regimes, regiments of Chinese labor, and the ruthless exploitation of workers and natural resources in some of the poorest countries in the world sparked fierce debates. These debates, however, took place with very few hard facts. China's tradition of secrecy about its aid fueled rumors and speculation, making it difficult to gauge the risks and opportunities provided by China's growing embrace.
This well-timed book, by one of the world's leading experts, provides the first comprehensive account of China's aid and economic cooperation overseas. Deborah Brautigam tackles the myths and realities, explaining what the Chinese are doing, how they do it, how much aid they give, and how it all fits into their "going global" strategy. Drawing on three decades of experience in China and Africa and hundreds of interviews in Africa, China, Europe, and the US, Brautigam shines new light on a topic of great interest.
This well-timed book, by one of the world's leading experts, provides the first comprehensive account of China's aid and economic cooperation overseas. Deborah Brautigam tackles the myths and realities, explaining what the Chinese are doing, how they do it, how much aid they give, and how it all fits into their "going global" strategy. Drawing on three decades of experience in China and Africa and hundreds of interviews in Africa, China, Europe, and the US, Brautigam shines new light on a topic of great interest.
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First published November 19, 2009
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About the author
Deborah Brautigam
10 books21 followersDr. Deborah Bräutigam has been writing about the fact and fiction of China and Africa; state-building; governance and foreign aid for more than 20 years. Her most recent book, Will Africa Feed China? (Oxford University Press, 2015), sheds light on the contrast between realities, and the conventional wisdom, on Chinese agricultural investment in Africa. She is also author of The Dragon’s Gift: The Real Story of China in Africa (Oxford University Press, 2010). Currently Bernard L. Schwartz Professor of International Political Economy, Director of the International Development Program and founding director of the China Africa Research Initiative (CARI) at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), she has also held faculty appointments at American University, Columbia University, the University of Bergen, Norway, and been a senior research fellow with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington, DC. Dr. Bräutigam has twice won the Fulbright research award. She is also a recipient of fellowships from the Council on Foreign Relations and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Her research and work with CARI has been funded by the German Marshall Fund of the United States, the Smith Richardson Foundation, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the UK Centre for Economic Policy and Research (CEPR), Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). She has served as a consultant for Transparency International, the United Nations, the World Bank, DFID, GIZ, DANIDA, the African Development Bank, and USAID, and has provided commentary to the Financial Times, the New York Times, the Guardian, CNN, NPR, Al-Jazeera, VOA, CCTV, and MSNBC. Her Ph.D. is from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University.
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May 18, 2018
Have you ever considered that the efforts of China may constitute a lifeline for the African nations? I, for one, never considered it in those terms! Here goes some brainfood.
Hands down 5 stars for a very fair endeavour to excercise critical thinking and to see both sides of the equation. A lot of in-depth information to muse over.
More review to follow!
Q:
The Chinese are many things in Africa: touring presidents delivering grand promises for partnership, provincial companies with very long names, huge global corporations, resource-hungry and profit-motivated. They are factory managers demanding long hours of work, tough businesswomen, scrap metal buyers, traders. They offer frank deals that they expect to work well for China, but also for Africa: roads, broadband, land lines, high-tech seeds. They bring aid workers: vocational teachers, agricultural specialists, water engineers, youth volunteers, and others who have come, as so many from the West have done, out of curiosity, a sense of adventure, or a desire to help the poor. And they have not just arrived on the scene. (c)
Q:
Their long history in post-independence Africa gives China legitimacy
and credibility among many Africans. Arriving after independence, they
never really left. The West simply did not notice the Chinese teams laboring
upcountry building small hydropower stations and bridges, repairing irrigation
systems, managing state-owned factories, all usually without the kind
of billboards other donors favored to advertise their presence. Today, Africa
fits into the strategy of “going global,” not simply for its natural resources,
but for opportunities in trade, construction, industry: business. The Chinese
are linking business and aid in innovative ways. Aid subsidizes Chinese
companies to set up agro-technical demonstration stations, or economic
cooperation and development centers. The Chinese are experimenting,
hoping that the profit motive will make these efforts sustainable, releasing
the Chinese government from having to return again and again to resuscitate
its aid projects. They will continue to change, and grow, and learn from
these experiments, and we would do well to follow this progress and learn
from it too.
By Western standards, China is secretive about its aid and export credits.
This lack of transparency understandably raises suspicion and concern.
Beijing could easily address this by using reporting standards adopted
long ago by the OECD. But, on the other hand, private banks and corporations
in the West have long maintained secrecy about their deals with
African leaders. Transparency is good, but the West should lead the way.
It would be unrealistic to expect Chinese corporations to be the first to
publish their own business contracts.
China is now a powerful force in Africa, and the Chinese are not going
away. Their embrace of the continent is strategic, planned, long-term, and
still unfolding.
Ultimately, it is up to African governments to shape this encounter in
ways that will benefit their people. Many will not grasp this opportunity, but
some will. The West can help by gaining a more realistic picture of China’s
engagement, avoiding sensationalism and paranoia, admitting our own
shortcomings, and perhaps exploring the notion that China’s model of
consistent non-intervention may be preferable to a China that regularly
intervenes in other countries’ domestic affairs, or uses military force to foster
political change.
At the end of the day, we should remember this: China’s own experiments
have raised hundreds of millions of Chinese out of poverty, largely without
foreign aid. They believe in investment, trade, and technology as levers for
development, and they are applying these same tools in their African
engagement, not out of altruism but because of what they learned at
home. They learned that their own natural resources could be assets for
modernization and prosperity. They learned that a central government
commitment to capitalist business development could rapidly reduce poverty.
They learned that special zones could attract clusters of mature industries
from the West and Japan, providing jobs and technologies. These lessons
emphasize not aid, but experiments; not paternalism, but the “creative
destruction” of competition and the green shoots of new opportunities.
This may be the dragon’s ultimate, ambiguous gift. (c)
Hands down 5 stars for a very fair endeavour to excercise critical thinking and to see both sides of the equation. A lot of in-depth information to muse over.
More review to follow!
Q:
The Chinese are many things in Africa: touring presidents delivering grand promises for partnership, provincial companies with very long names, huge global corporations, resource-hungry and profit-motivated. They are factory managers demanding long hours of work, tough businesswomen, scrap metal buyers, traders. They offer frank deals that they expect to work well for China, but also for Africa: roads, broadband, land lines, high-tech seeds. They bring aid workers: vocational teachers, agricultural specialists, water engineers, youth volunteers, and others who have come, as so many from the West have done, out of curiosity, a sense of adventure, or a desire to help the poor. And they have not just arrived on the scene. (c)
Q:
Their long history in post-independence Africa gives China legitimacy
and credibility among many Africans. Arriving after independence, they
never really left. The West simply did not notice the Chinese teams laboring
upcountry building small hydropower stations and bridges, repairing irrigation
systems, managing state-owned factories, all usually without the kind
of billboards other donors favored to advertise their presence. Today, Africa
fits into the strategy of “going global,” not simply for its natural resources,
but for opportunities in trade, construction, industry: business. The Chinese
are linking business and aid in innovative ways. Aid subsidizes Chinese
companies to set up agro-technical demonstration stations, or economic
cooperation and development centers. The Chinese are experimenting,
hoping that the profit motive will make these efforts sustainable, releasing
the Chinese government from having to return again and again to resuscitate
its aid projects. They will continue to change, and grow, and learn from
these experiments, and we would do well to follow this progress and learn
from it too.
By Western standards, China is secretive about its aid and export credits.
This lack of transparency understandably raises suspicion and concern.
Beijing could easily address this by using reporting standards adopted
long ago by the OECD. But, on the other hand, private banks and corporations
in the West have long maintained secrecy about their deals with
African leaders. Transparency is good, but the West should lead the way.
It would be unrealistic to expect Chinese corporations to be the first to
publish their own business contracts.
China is now a powerful force in Africa, and the Chinese are not going
away. Their embrace of the continent is strategic, planned, long-term, and
still unfolding.
Ultimately, it is up to African governments to shape this encounter in
ways that will benefit their people. Many will not grasp this opportunity, but
some will. The West can help by gaining a more realistic picture of China’s
engagement, avoiding sensationalism and paranoia, admitting our own
shortcomings, and perhaps exploring the notion that China’s model of
consistent non-intervention may be preferable to a China that regularly
intervenes in other countries’ domestic affairs, or uses military force to foster
political change.
At the end of the day, we should remember this: China’s own experiments
have raised hundreds of millions of Chinese out of poverty, largely without
foreign aid. They believe in investment, trade, and technology as levers for
development, and they are applying these same tools in their African
engagement, not out of altruism but because of what they learned at
home. They learned that their own natural resources could be assets for
modernization and prosperity. They learned that a central government
commitment to capitalist business development could rapidly reduce poverty.
They learned that special zones could attract clusters of mature industries
from the West and Japan, providing jobs and technologies. These lessons
emphasize not aid, but experiments; not paternalism, but the “creative
destruction” of competition and the green shoots of new opportunities.
This may be the dragon’s ultimate, ambiguous gift. (c)
October 6, 2012
An interesting book, though not one I would recommend to many. It's long and academic, so you have to be interested in the subject. I was certainly interested in the subject myself, though. China's engagement with Africa is something I have seen first hand in Malawi, Zambia, and Uganda -- and many of the myths which the author debunks are myths which I have heard here first hand.
She has a few main points about China's engagement with Africa:
1. The numbers quoted are almost always inflated, double counted, or just plain incorrect. China is a major donor (and investor) in Africa, but the Western countries still represent a much larger figure.
2. China's engagement in Africa is not a new thing, it is a long standing thing -- the West just wasn't paying attention in the past.
3. China's engagement is not purely for the purposes of extracting resources for their own markets, as they are often accused of. They invest in many countries and sectors, and generally focus not on resources but on profits, businesses, international brands, and exports. These things often do concern resources, but China's engagement is not purely aimed towards oil, copper, etc.
4. Many of the practices of which China is accused of (tied aid, resource backed loans, export and import credits, etc.) are things that China learned from the West. Western countries still practiced these things until very recently (and in some cases still do). So China cannot be accused of wrong doing without some finger pointing at the West as well.
5. Much of China's aid and investment is channeled to infrastructure and manufacturing, which have been neglected by the West.
6. And China attempts to make their aid and investment win-win.
I found the book to be very interesting. She debunks many of the myths and shows the upside to much of what China does. Often China is simply misunderstood -- though they bear much of the blame for that, since it is often a result of a lack of transparency. She definitely added depth to my own analysis of China in Africa.
That being said I do have a few gripes. For one thing the book is rather short on conclusions. The author spends a lot of time looking at China's engagement in Africa, and trying to tease out the facts from the myths, but in the end she never seems to conclusively answer her own questions (in particular about whether China's aid and investment is truly win-win). That is probably because it is a difficult (if not impossible) question to answer, but she keeps saying she'll get to that in a later chapter and by the end of the book I felt a bit let down. For another thing she often lets China off the hook because other people do the same thing or did the same thing in the past. It's certainly true that we can't excoriate China for doing things that we ourselves may still do, but we also shouldn't accept the argument "...but HE did it to ME..." China's engagement in Africa does represent concerns around labour practices, environmental damage, corruption, poor governance, unfair subsidies, and cut-price competition. The fact that the West represents similar concerns at times does not change that.
The most interesting thing about this book, though, was looking at Chinese ideas about aid and investment. China is unique (or almost unique) in the fact that it is a developing country which offers aid and investment to other developing countries (as opposed to an already developed country). And that definitely changes their view and approach. This is seen in the way they have changed aid giving based on their own experience, and it is certainly seen in their disdain for Western paternalism (conditionality and structural adjustment being the primary examples). The book definitely got me thinking.
She has a few main points about China's engagement with Africa:
1. The numbers quoted are almost always inflated, double counted, or just plain incorrect. China is a major donor (and investor) in Africa, but the Western countries still represent a much larger figure.
2. China's engagement in Africa is not a new thing, it is a long standing thing -- the West just wasn't paying attention in the past.
3. China's engagement is not purely for the purposes of extracting resources for their own markets, as they are often accused of. They invest in many countries and sectors, and generally focus not on resources but on profits, businesses, international brands, and exports. These things often do concern resources, but China's engagement is not purely aimed towards oil, copper, etc.
4. Many of the practices of which China is accused of (tied aid, resource backed loans, export and import credits, etc.) are things that China learned from the West. Western countries still practiced these things until very recently (and in some cases still do). So China cannot be accused of wrong doing without some finger pointing at the West as well.
5. Much of China's aid and investment is channeled to infrastructure and manufacturing, which have been neglected by the West.
6. And China attempts to make their aid and investment win-win.
I found the book to be very interesting. She debunks many of the myths and shows the upside to much of what China does. Often China is simply misunderstood -- though they bear much of the blame for that, since it is often a result of a lack of transparency. She definitely added depth to my own analysis of China in Africa.
That being said I do have a few gripes. For one thing the book is rather short on conclusions. The author spends a lot of time looking at China's engagement in Africa, and trying to tease out the facts from the myths, but in the end she never seems to conclusively answer her own questions (in particular about whether China's aid and investment is truly win-win). That is probably because it is a difficult (if not impossible) question to answer, but she keeps saying she'll get to that in a later chapter and by the end of the book I felt a bit let down. For another thing she often lets China off the hook because other people do the same thing or did the same thing in the past. It's certainly true that we can't excoriate China for doing things that we ourselves may still do, but we also shouldn't accept the argument "...but HE did it to ME..." China's engagement in Africa does represent concerns around labour practices, environmental damage, corruption, poor governance, unfair subsidies, and cut-price competition. The fact that the West represents similar concerns at times does not change that.
The most interesting thing about this book, though, was looking at Chinese ideas about aid and investment. China is unique (or almost unique) in the fact that it is a developing country which offers aid and investment to other developing countries (as opposed to an already developed country). And that definitely changes their view and approach. This is seen in the way they have changed aid giving based on their own experience, and it is certainly seen in their disdain for Western paternalism (conditionality and structural adjustment being the primary examples). The book definitely got me thinking.
May 26, 2018
I couldn't finish it, because Brautigam's mischaracterizations of Chinese history under Mao suggest such a deep bias it suggests the book is unlikely to be accurate in any meaningful way. Not only did she cut in half the scholarly estimates of how many people died of starvation during the 'Great Leap Forward' (she gave 20 Million, when the most accurate estimate is likely to be 40 Million at least) she followed this but stating 'between these two extremes a more pragmatic road prevailed'. I am sorry, I fail to understand how economic policy which starves 40 Million people to death could in any sense be considered 'pragmatic'. She also fails to mention that Chinese Aid under Mao was actually pioneered during the famine, as he ordered tons of grain sent as gifts to communist countries to bolster his image while his people starved. (Read Mao's Great Famine if you are curious.)
Her basic thesis - that Chinese Aid is primarily economic investment focused on mutual benefit - is an interesting one. Unfortunately, it bellies every example of Chinese development that I have seen with my own eyes. I have travelled extensively in countries which receive 'The Dragons Gift' and seen in person the empty, ghostly hospitals and irrationally placed abandoned airports it produces. If there is any 'mutual benefit' here, it is solely for the autocratic leaders in these counties. In addition one need not go far to learn about not just useless but literally poisenous forms of Chinese aid - look up the sales of counterfeit and useless medicine to people in rural Papua New Guinea if you need an example of this. In this case Chinese 'aid' is literally killing people with no other access to health resources.
Despite my background knowledge of the problems with Chinese Aid I was still interested in her thesis and wanted to hear her out. Unfortunately Brautigam's unwillingness to engage with the difficult facts on the ground, and willingness to twist them to fit her story, make me highly doubtful of her scholarship. I don't think this book is worth the time to read it.
Her basic thesis - that Chinese Aid is primarily economic investment focused on mutual benefit - is an interesting one. Unfortunately, it bellies every example of Chinese development that I have seen with my own eyes. I have travelled extensively in countries which receive 'The Dragons Gift' and seen in person the empty, ghostly hospitals and irrationally placed abandoned airports it produces. If there is any 'mutual benefit' here, it is solely for the autocratic leaders in these counties. In addition one need not go far to learn about not just useless but literally poisenous forms of Chinese aid - look up the sales of counterfeit and useless medicine to people in rural Papua New Guinea if you need an example of this. In this case Chinese 'aid' is literally killing people with no other access to health resources.
Despite my background knowledge of the problems with Chinese Aid I was still interested in her thesis and wanted to hear her out. Unfortunately Brautigam's unwillingness to engage with the difficult facts on the ground, and willingness to twist them to fit her story, make me highly doubtful of her scholarship. I don't think this book is worth the time to read it.
October 9, 2020
What if the Economist, IMF and European Parliament are wrong in their understanding of the situation of Chinese aid to Africa? This is written by Brautigam, an American scholar who speaks Chinese and travels to Africa frequently.
China Aid is:
1. Modelled after Japanese aid to China decades ago.
2. Much smaller than believed but shrouded in mystery
3. In the form of credits and not cash with raw materials from African countries as collateral, often to buy Chinese exports
4. Similar to Western aid when multiple visits are required to repair and run the original aid projects
5. Linked to the One China Policy
6. Started way before China was rich
7. Done by hard working and simple living Chinese experts who stay at the sites, not Swiss engineers who stay in hotels and took helicopters
8. Done more and more by private companies and money making
9. Also given as cheap loans (only 1.5% above LIBOR over 18 years and not the usual 2.5% above over 5 years)
10. Not contingent on IMF/World Bank reforms
11. Welcomed by many African countries
12. Actually helpful in building much needed infrastructure
13. Not alone in supporting corrupt regimes (the West does it too)
14. Often the scapegoat in condemnation by the West
15. Came in just when the West’s investment was leaving the continent
16. Helped by Chinese expatriates who stayed behind
17. Helped by experts who are sometimes forced to go by the government
18. Results in projects beset by the same problems encountered by Western donors: Low productivity, a different work ethics, poor education and infrastructure and safety issues
This book is more accurate since many reports by the Western media are even now being written by people who had never set foot in Africa. Even though this is written 10 years ago, it explains the real story behind.
China Aid is:
1. Modelled after Japanese aid to China decades ago.
2. Much smaller than believed but shrouded in mystery
3. In the form of credits and not cash with raw materials from African countries as collateral, often to buy Chinese exports
4. Similar to Western aid when multiple visits are required to repair and run the original aid projects
5. Linked to the One China Policy
6. Started way before China was rich
7. Done by hard working and simple living Chinese experts who stay at the sites, not Swiss engineers who stay in hotels and took helicopters
8. Done more and more by private companies and money making
9. Also given as cheap loans (only 1.5% above LIBOR over 18 years and not the usual 2.5% above over 5 years)
10. Not contingent on IMF/World Bank reforms
11. Welcomed by many African countries
12. Actually helpful in building much needed infrastructure
13. Not alone in supporting corrupt regimes (the West does it too)
14. Often the scapegoat in condemnation by the West
15. Came in just when the West’s investment was leaving the continent
16. Helped by Chinese expatriates who stayed behind
17. Helped by experts who are sometimes forced to go by the government
18. Results in projects beset by the same problems encountered by Western donors: Low productivity, a different work ethics, poor education and infrastructure and safety issues
This book is more accurate since many reports by the Western media are even now being written by people who had never set foot in Africa. Even though this is written 10 years ago, it explains the real story behind.
October 19, 2023
The rating represents the book's value when it was published (~2010). Unfortunately, it was over ten years ago, and many have happened since then, so feel free to subtract 1 star.
My comments:
1. A lot of detail. I mean - A LOT LOT. At times, it felt overwhelming.
2. The author definitely knows what she writes about - she had high exposure to both China & Africa, which put her in quite a unique position.
3. The description is dispassionate, calm, and pragmatic - doesn't try to ring all the alarm bells available but to understand motivations, intentions & mechanisms. She also is not afraid to indicate where China is doing basically what Western countries did before. Double standards are not present here (as far as I can tell).
4. Frankly, there's very little on ideological aspects, like indoctrination. I'm not really referring to spreading Maoism - that would be very unlikely. I'm more interested in the possible fuelling of anti-American sentiment and playing on anti-colonial instincts.
5. Surprisingly, there are not that many conclusions (not mentioning suggestions to counter-balance Chinese influence) - it's pretty much the last chapter (which is the shortest one, btw.).
I enjoyed it, it was informative, maybe even TOO informative. Definitely the best book on the topic (that I know).
My comments:
1. A lot of detail. I mean - A LOT LOT. At times, it felt overwhelming.
2. The author definitely knows what she writes about - she had high exposure to both China & Africa, which put her in quite a unique position.
3. The description is dispassionate, calm, and pragmatic - doesn't try to ring all the alarm bells available but to understand motivations, intentions & mechanisms. She also is not afraid to indicate where China is doing basically what Western countries did before. Double standards are not present here (as far as I can tell).
4. Frankly, there's very little on ideological aspects, like indoctrination. I'm not really referring to spreading Maoism - that would be very unlikely. I'm more interested in the possible fuelling of anti-American sentiment and playing on anti-colonial instincts.
5. Surprisingly, there are not that many conclusions (not mentioning suggestions to counter-balance Chinese influence) - it's pretty much the last chapter (which is the shortest one, btw.).
I enjoyed it, it was informative, maybe even TOO informative. Definitely the best book on the topic (that I know).
November 20, 2016
A little outdated since it was written and published before 2010 and during the Hu-Wen Administration. But, wow, thank you, Ms. Brautigam, for the conclusion part.
March 8, 2024
Deborah Brautigm's work on China is one of the best, and although The Dragon's Gift is somewhat dated as at the point I read it, it's still a great point of insight into China's place in the global financial systems. The book is quite detail heavy, and reflects the likely intended audience as being those that would likely benefit from these details - so for someone looking for a very easy entry point, this may not be where to start.
The fundamental point made here is that of mutual benefit as a cornerstone of China's engagement with Africa, and one that squarely counters the argument of outright appropriation, exploitation, and malice that often comes across. With many stories, the actual complexity of the situation is explained quite well and to do so on such a complex and many layered topic as debt is great to see. What I would have liked more, is on how the outcomes of these aid could have moved in the future - which could have helped frame some of the reality that did occur as mostly vapid. Even though additional context has made the story a bit incomplete, the story hasn't been rendered incorrect by any means.
The work done is exemplary and a great book. Especially with the benefit of hindsight, it's a great book that still has great usefulness, a rare outcome.
The fundamental point made here is that of mutual benefit as a cornerstone of China's engagement with Africa, and one that squarely counters the argument of outright appropriation, exploitation, and malice that often comes across. With many stories, the actual complexity of the situation is explained quite well and to do so on such a complex and many layered topic as debt is great to see. What I would have liked more, is on how the outcomes of these aid could have moved in the future - which could have helped frame some of the reality that did occur as mostly vapid. Even though additional context has made the story a bit incomplete, the story hasn't been rendered incorrect by any means.
The work done is exemplary and a great book. Especially with the benefit of hindsight, it's a great book that still has great usefulness, a rare outcome.
October 9, 2025
This book provided a comprehensive look at Chinese aid and economic development in Africa with the caveat that it is comprehensive in so far as information is available from and accurately represented by China.
Her perspective on how and why China engages with certain countries and not others was helpful even when the amount of detail provided could cause the reader to lose the point at times. Some of the ideas she introduced were unfamiliar to me and they seemed reasonable well supported.
However, her retelling of certain Chinese historical events coupled with her rosy assessment of their current intentions are in such stark contrast to most reporting and writing makes me question many of her assertions. The book is also almost a decade old (not a critique) so that impacts how relevant some of her characterizations remain.
What prevents this from receiving only two stars is the amount of research she introduced me to that I was previously unfamiliar with. It was helpful even if I think I need to question some of her analytical conclusions.
Her perspective on how and why China engages with certain countries and not others was helpful even when the amount of detail provided could cause the reader to lose the point at times. Some of the ideas she introduced were unfamiliar to me and they seemed reasonable well supported.
However, her retelling of certain Chinese historical events coupled with her rosy assessment of their current intentions are in such stark contrast to most reporting and writing makes me question many of her assertions. The book is also almost a decade old (not a critique) so that impacts how relevant some of her characterizations remain.
What prevents this from receiving only two stars is the amount of research she introduced me to that I was previously unfamiliar with. It was helpful even if I think I need to question some of her analytical conclusions.
January 5, 2019
You may have noticed recent newspaper stories hyping the billions of dollars that China is giving to Africa... all to get their natural resources. Brautigam reassures the reader that this isn't new, that it's been going on since the 1960s and that the numbers have been greatly exaggerated. She points out that Westerners decry China's record of corruption, environmental carelessness, willingness to work with dictators, and low wages. But turns out that the West hasn't been free or innocent of these things either. China's experiment with pulling millions of it's own citizens out of poverty has given it insights and a willingness to work with other struggling countries... especially when said countries have a One China policy.
Why I started this book: I always stock up on digital books for long flights... some would say overstock. But the best part of eBooks, is that 1 eBook weighs as much as 100.
Why I finished it: This book was dense with names, places and histories that I didn't know, a wonderful opportunity to learn more.
Why I started this book: I always stock up on digital books for long flights... some would say overstock. But the best part of eBooks, is that 1 eBook weighs as much as 100.
Why I finished it: This book was dense with names, places and histories that I didn't know, a wonderful opportunity to learn more.
August 8, 2023
The Dragon’s Gift rethinks many assumptions often voiced in echo chambers of US strategy/military circles. Brautigam spent a lifetime seeking answers to deep questions like “why do nations provide economic aid to others?”; “under what conditions does aid work?”; “and to what end?” This book applies a vast, well informed methodology to scratch at answering those questions regarding China’s aid to African nations.
In short, the author finds China’s interests and intentions are much more complex and nuanced than often labeled by mainstream media. Instead of painting Chinese economic aid as a sinister plot to spread PRC influence and entangle disadvantaged 3rd-world nations, Brautigam finds evidence supporting a theory that Chinese aid may more represent a paying-forward of the economic boost China itself received under Deng Xiaoping; a mutually beneficial relationship that aims to achieve the social, morale, and economic goals inherent to honest aid programs.
In short, the author finds China’s interests and intentions are much more complex and nuanced than often labeled by mainstream media. Instead of painting Chinese economic aid as a sinister plot to spread PRC influence and entangle disadvantaged 3rd-world nations, Brautigam finds evidence supporting a theory that Chinese aid may more represent a paying-forward of the economic boost China itself received under Deng Xiaoping; a mutually beneficial relationship that aims to achieve the social, morale, and economic goals inherent to honest aid programs.
November 17, 2022
Pretty Shocking Read
This was a pretty shocking book.
Like a lot of it I found unsettling and upsetting.
I would highly recommend reading this if you are interested in international politics and economics.
I also felt it very similar to the book China's Second Continent: How a Million Migrants Are Building a New Empire in Africa, so I would recommend reading them both together.
Read to learn. Open your mind!
4.7/5
This was a pretty shocking book.
Like a lot of it I found unsettling and upsetting.
I would highly recommend reading this if you are interested in international politics and economics.
I also felt it very similar to the book China's Second Continent: How a Million Migrants Are Building a New Empire in Africa, so I would recommend reading them both together.
Read to learn. Open your mind!
4.7/5
October 4, 2024
Brautigam’s ambiguous view and short conclusions made this book feel peripheral and undecided in China’s influence on Africa’s debt trap.
September 25, 2025
3,5
De Chinese aanwezigheid in Afrika wordt vaak door een smogzwarte bril bekeken. Onterecht, schrijft Deborah Bräutigam: er is geen bewijs dat China's Afrikabeleid nefaster is dan dat van de VS of Europa, en op sommige vlakken is het merkbaar beter.
Zo investeert China gericht in de ontwikkeling van lokale maakindustrieën: dat terwijl de westerse donors al sinds 1960 weinig inzetten op infrastructuur of industrialisering. Daarbij helpt het dat China liever machinerie exporteert dan grondstoffen en er dus zelf baat bij heeft om importsubstitutie in Afrika te stimuleren. De competitie van China kan tegelijk ook fataal zijn. Voor Afrikaanse industrieën blijft het een gewaagde gok: Chinese investeringen kunnen hen helpen en ze kunnen er expertise of technologie van overnemen... áls ze er niet eerst door worden kapotgeconcurreerd.
Een ander belangrijk verschil met de Bretton Woods-instellingen is dat Chinese leningen niet gepaard gaan met draconische voorwaarden. Specifieke projecten zijn nochtans niet per se onvoorwaardelijk. Zo moest Zimbabwe de gangbare elektriciteitstarieven verhogen in ruil voor investeringen in nieuwe centrales. Maar globaal klopt het plaatje dat het IMF veel extremere eisen stelt, terwijl de Chinese voorwaarden gelden als de uitkomst van geval-per-geval onderhandelingen.
Ook inspirerend is wat China omschrijft als "dynamic sustainability". Eerder dan te hyperfocussen op de vraag of een land een lening wel kan terugbetalen (waarbij de huidige situatie als een statisch en blijvend gegeven wordt gezien), wijzen Chinese krediteurs erop dat een land éérst de kans moet krijgen om te ontwikkelen. Wat het nu nog niet kan terugbetalen, zal wel mogelijk worden eenmaal de ontwikkeling vruchten afwerpt. Dit soort visies heeft de Chinese overheid ontwikkeld vanuit haar eigen historische ervaring als ontvanger ipv donor van hulp.
In sommige gevallen maakt ze gebruik van een andere praktijk uit haar verleden als hulptrekker (vooral Japan deed dit indertijd in China): leningen en projecten die worden afgelost met ruwe grondstoffen. Deze praktijk is bijzonder hoopgevend voor de minst ontwikkelde Afrikaanse landen. Angola kon in de jaren 2000 rekenen op Chinese heropbouw van infrastructuur, ziekenhuizen en scholen in ruil voor ruwe olie. Een aanpak die - ironisch genoeg - veel sneller tot transparantie en corruptiebestrijding leidde dan het IMF-besluit om pas een lening goed te keuren nádat Angola al transparanter en minder corrupt zou zijn geworden.
De veelgehoorde notie dat China alleen hulp biedt om grondstoffen te bemachtigen blijkt nochtans ongegrond. Chinese investeringen zijn verspreid over het hele continent en niet geconcentreerd in de meest grondstofrijke landen. Dat betekent niet dat China belangeloos handelt, wel dat die belangen minder neerkomen op puur extractivisme en meer op winstgevende contracten in zowat alle sectoren. Huawei is bijvoorbeeld extreem actief in de telecomsystemen van heel Afrika.
Het is ook het onderstrepen waard dat de Chinese aanwezigheid in Afrika veel minder recent is dan vaak wordt gedacht. Sinds de jaren '60 al heeft het land projecten en investeringen gehad in het hele continent. De moderne Afrikastrategie vloeit voort uit het Mao-tijdperk.
Een kritiek die volgens Bräutigam wel klopt, is dat China er niet voldoende in slaagt om lokale capaciteit op te bouwen in de Afrikaanse landen. Maar dat komt niet door bewuste onwil en China heeft dit probleem gemeen met alle traditionele donoren. Het Westen importeert evengoed zijn eigen experten - en die worden in de regel veel duurder betaald.
***
Bräutigam brengt tal van feiten en veldwerk aan om haar analyses te staven. "Mythbusting" is haar grootste verdienste, naast de vlotte schrijfstijl in een boek over een thema dat droger is dan de Taklamakanwoestijn.
Toch blijf je op je honger zitten doordat de impact op de doorsnee Afrikaan weinig in beeld komt. Het boek illustreert dat de Chinezen omzichtig omspringen met de soevereiniteit van Afrikaanse regeringen. Maar het bewijst niet dat China geen bedreiging vormt voor arbeidsomstandigheden of milieuregulaties, alleen dat het op die vlakken niet moet onderdoen voor het Westen.
Als je de citaten van Chinese ondernemers doorheen dit boek leest, klinken die best gelijkaardig aan hun westerse of Japanse tegenhangers. Zij willen evengoed in Afrika de "loonkost" drukken en worden daarin gesteund door hun regering. Net als de Wereldbank wil Beijing Afrikaanse landen aantrekkelijk maken voor kapitaal, niet de slagkracht van arbeiders vergroten. Ook maken de Chinezen er amper een geheim van dat ze hun competitieve positie danken aan de afwezigheid van onafhankelijke vakbonden in het thuisland.
Bräutigam citeert ergens de visie van een Chinese beleidsmaker dat lonen in Afrika nu eenmaal gedrukt moeten worden om later "de vruchten te kunnen plukken"; een trickle-down-slagzin die zo uit de koker van Reagan had kunnen komen. Meestal is het geen goed teken voor de toekomst van je linkse project als hooggeplaatste functionarissen dit soort taal uitslaan.
Ik wil hiermee niet álle sino-optimisme de grond in boren. De troeven van China's investeringen in Afrika zijn reëel, bieden zowel autonomie als kansen aan armere landen, en ontwikkeling is hoe dan ook een complexe taak die experimentatie vraagt. Maar in hoeverre moeten we in een "race to the bottom"-logica meestappen om pragmatische redenen? Cru gesteld heb ik nog altijd meer vertrouwen in wat Afrikaanse vakbonden zeggen over hun eigen belangen dan in het grootse masterplan van een Chinese technocraat.
The Dragon's Gift ziet investeringen echter vaak als een doel op zich, zonder veel aandacht voor klasse, machtsverhoudingen, sociale rechtvaardigheid, de verdeling van rijkdom of de positie van vakbonden. Die aanpak heeft wel zijn voordelen. Een technocratisch boek is geloofwaardiger dan een traktaat wanneer het misleidende claims ontkracht, en het behoudt tenminste de focus op eigenlijke mechanismes ipv die meteen te abstraheren tot de belangen erachter.
Naast meer aandacht voor maatschappelijke effecten zou het interessant zijn als Bräutigam inging op de "grote vragen" van de ontwikkelingsstrategie. Bijvoorbeeld: onder welke voorwaarden en voor hoelang kan privatisering een nut hebben, eerder dan een parasitair vehikel te worden om waarde op een massale schaal van de Derde Wereld naar buitenlandse elites over te hevelen (zoals de facto gebeurt onder de SAPs)? En hoe goed slaagt China erin om te vermijden dat haar eigen nieuwe toplaag van ondernemers steeds meer de Chinese (geo)politiek vormgeeft? Ambitieuze vragen, maar het is dan ook een ambitieus thema.
Een ander punt is dat The Dragon's Gift na vijftien jaar natuurlijk niet meer de actueelste studie is. Van het Belt & Road-project was nog geen sprake en de recency bias zorgt ervoor dat het boek soms inzoomt op heel specifieke claims die vandaag niet zo boeiend of relevant meer zijn.
Wat wel heel goed is, is dat Bräutigam haar boek niet presenteert als de verdediging van het ene of het andere uiterste standpunt over China, maar het vergelijkt met Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon: "Kurosawa left his viewers pondering what really happened in the woods that day. They were sure of only one thing: the story was no longer so black and white, with a villain, a victim, and a clear verdict of guilty." In die opzet is ze alleszins geslaagd.
De Chinese aanwezigheid in Afrika wordt vaak door een smogzwarte bril bekeken. Onterecht, schrijft Deborah Bräutigam: er is geen bewijs dat China's Afrikabeleid nefaster is dan dat van de VS of Europa, en op sommige vlakken is het merkbaar beter.
Zo investeert China gericht in de ontwikkeling van lokale maakindustrieën: dat terwijl de westerse donors al sinds 1960 weinig inzetten op infrastructuur of industrialisering. Daarbij helpt het dat China liever machinerie exporteert dan grondstoffen en er dus zelf baat bij heeft om importsubstitutie in Afrika te stimuleren. De competitie van China kan tegelijk ook fataal zijn. Voor Afrikaanse industrieën blijft het een gewaagde gok: Chinese investeringen kunnen hen helpen en ze kunnen er expertise of technologie van overnemen... áls ze er niet eerst door worden kapotgeconcurreerd.
Een ander belangrijk verschil met de Bretton Woods-instellingen is dat Chinese leningen niet gepaard gaan met draconische voorwaarden. Specifieke projecten zijn nochtans niet per se onvoorwaardelijk. Zo moest Zimbabwe de gangbare elektriciteitstarieven verhogen in ruil voor investeringen in nieuwe centrales. Maar globaal klopt het plaatje dat het IMF veel extremere eisen stelt, terwijl de Chinese voorwaarden gelden als de uitkomst van geval-per-geval onderhandelingen.
Ook inspirerend is wat China omschrijft als "dynamic sustainability". Eerder dan te hyperfocussen op de vraag of een land een lening wel kan terugbetalen (waarbij de huidige situatie als een statisch en blijvend gegeven wordt gezien), wijzen Chinese krediteurs erop dat een land éérst de kans moet krijgen om te ontwikkelen. Wat het nu nog niet kan terugbetalen, zal wel mogelijk worden eenmaal de ontwikkeling vruchten afwerpt. Dit soort visies heeft de Chinese overheid ontwikkeld vanuit haar eigen historische ervaring als ontvanger ipv donor van hulp.
In sommige gevallen maakt ze gebruik van een andere praktijk uit haar verleden als hulptrekker (vooral Japan deed dit indertijd in China): leningen en projecten die worden afgelost met ruwe grondstoffen. Deze praktijk is bijzonder hoopgevend voor de minst ontwikkelde Afrikaanse landen. Angola kon in de jaren 2000 rekenen op Chinese heropbouw van infrastructuur, ziekenhuizen en scholen in ruil voor ruwe olie. Een aanpak die - ironisch genoeg - veel sneller tot transparantie en corruptiebestrijding leidde dan het IMF-besluit om pas een lening goed te keuren nádat Angola al transparanter en minder corrupt zou zijn geworden.
De veelgehoorde notie dat China alleen hulp biedt om grondstoffen te bemachtigen blijkt nochtans ongegrond. Chinese investeringen zijn verspreid over het hele continent en niet geconcentreerd in de meest grondstofrijke landen. Dat betekent niet dat China belangeloos handelt, wel dat die belangen minder neerkomen op puur extractivisme en meer op winstgevende contracten in zowat alle sectoren. Huawei is bijvoorbeeld extreem actief in de telecomsystemen van heel Afrika.
Het is ook het onderstrepen waard dat de Chinese aanwezigheid in Afrika veel minder recent is dan vaak wordt gedacht. Sinds de jaren '60 al heeft het land projecten en investeringen gehad in het hele continent. De moderne Afrikastrategie vloeit voort uit het Mao-tijdperk.
Een kritiek die volgens Bräutigam wel klopt, is dat China er niet voldoende in slaagt om lokale capaciteit op te bouwen in de Afrikaanse landen. Maar dat komt niet door bewuste onwil en China heeft dit probleem gemeen met alle traditionele donoren. Het Westen importeert evengoed zijn eigen experten - en die worden in de regel veel duurder betaald.
***
Bräutigam brengt tal van feiten en veldwerk aan om haar analyses te staven. "Mythbusting" is haar grootste verdienste, naast de vlotte schrijfstijl in een boek over een thema dat droger is dan de Taklamakanwoestijn.
Toch blijf je op je honger zitten doordat de impact op de doorsnee Afrikaan weinig in beeld komt. Het boek illustreert dat de Chinezen omzichtig omspringen met de soevereiniteit van Afrikaanse regeringen. Maar het bewijst niet dat China geen bedreiging vormt voor arbeidsomstandigheden of milieuregulaties, alleen dat het op die vlakken niet moet onderdoen voor het Westen.
Als je de citaten van Chinese ondernemers doorheen dit boek leest, klinken die best gelijkaardig aan hun westerse of Japanse tegenhangers. Zij willen evengoed in Afrika de "loonkost" drukken en worden daarin gesteund door hun regering. Net als de Wereldbank wil Beijing Afrikaanse landen aantrekkelijk maken voor kapitaal, niet de slagkracht van arbeiders vergroten. Ook maken de Chinezen er amper een geheim van dat ze hun competitieve positie danken aan de afwezigheid van onafhankelijke vakbonden in het thuisland.
Bräutigam citeert ergens de visie van een Chinese beleidsmaker dat lonen in Afrika nu eenmaal gedrukt moeten worden om later "de vruchten te kunnen plukken"; een trickle-down-slagzin die zo uit de koker van Reagan had kunnen komen. Meestal is het geen goed teken voor de toekomst van je linkse project als hooggeplaatste functionarissen dit soort taal uitslaan.
Ik wil hiermee niet álle sino-optimisme de grond in boren. De troeven van China's investeringen in Afrika zijn reëel, bieden zowel autonomie als kansen aan armere landen, en ontwikkeling is hoe dan ook een complexe taak die experimentatie vraagt. Maar in hoeverre moeten we in een "race to the bottom"-logica meestappen om pragmatische redenen? Cru gesteld heb ik nog altijd meer vertrouwen in wat Afrikaanse vakbonden zeggen over hun eigen belangen dan in het grootse masterplan van een Chinese technocraat.
The Dragon's Gift ziet investeringen echter vaak als een doel op zich, zonder veel aandacht voor klasse, machtsverhoudingen, sociale rechtvaardigheid, de verdeling van rijkdom of de positie van vakbonden. Die aanpak heeft wel zijn voordelen. Een technocratisch boek is geloofwaardiger dan een traktaat wanneer het misleidende claims ontkracht, en het behoudt tenminste de focus op eigenlijke mechanismes ipv die meteen te abstraheren tot de belangen erachter.
Naast meer aandacht voor maatschappelijke effecten zou het interessant zijn als Bräutigam inging op de "grote vragen" van de ontwikkelingsstrategie. Bijvoorbeeld: onder welke voorwaarden en voor hoelang kan privatisering een nut hebben, eerder dan een parasitair vehikel te worden om waarde op een massale schaal van de Derde Wereld naar buitenlandse elites over te hevelen (zoals de facto gebeurt onder de SAPs)? En hoe goed slaagt China erin om te vermijden dat haar eigen nieuwe toplaag van ondernemers steeds meer de Chinese (geo)politiek vormgeeft? Ambitieuze vragen, maar het is dan ook een ambitieus thema.
Een ander punt is dat The Dragon's Gift na vijftien jaar natuurlijk niet meer de actueelste studie is. Van het Belt & Road-project was nog geen sprake en de recency bias zorgt ervoor dat het boek soms inzoomt op heel specifieke claims die vandaag niet zo boeiend of relevant meer zijn.
Wat wel heel goed is, is dat Bräutigam haar boek niet presenteert als de verdediging van het ene of het andere uiterste standpunt over China, maar het vergelijkt met Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon: "Kurosawa left his viewers pondering what really happened in the woods that day. They were sure of only one thing: the story was no longer so black and white, with a villain, a victim, and a clear verdict of guilty." In die opzet is ze alleszins geslaagd.
April 29, 2014
For the most part, this book accomplished what it set out to do: dispel a lot of rumors and myths. In that regard, it is insightful and worth reading. Brautigam lucidly explains how Chinese involvement in Africa is not entirely new, though its scale has increased as China has grown economically. Also, she points out that many of the lessons China learned during its own development have had a major impact on its aid and investment policies. Further, she does well to articulate the goals (mostly based on official statements) of Chinese aid and business in Africa. Most important is the fact that a lot of what goes on is not aid, but instead business and investment. Too often we confuse the two, leading to unfair criticism.
Despite its strengths, I felt the book, as a whole, had some glaring flaws. First, Brautigam fails to adequately answer the question of just how much positive impact Chinese involvement in Africa is having on ordinary Africans. She tries a little when discussing China's agricultural investments and aid packages, but the analysis falls short. Additionally, she quotes her interview subjects and newspaper reports that refer to African workers and managers involved in different Chinese projects as lazy and incompetent. After reproducing them, she never addresses the utterances at all (with maybe one exception). Failing to follow up on statements like these is evasive: she's not saying anyone's lazy, but she's not saying the quotes are wrong, either. These kinds of tacit agreement and lazy explanation are ubiquitous in the book.
Still, I think this book is worth reading. It sheds light on an important topic, challenges myths, and raises further questions.
Despite its strengths, I felt the book, as a whole, had some glaring flaws. First, Brautigam fails to adequately answer the question of just how much positive impact Chinese involvement in Africa is having on ordinary Africans. She tries a little when discussing China's agricultural investments and aid packages, but the analysis falls short. Additionally, she quotes her interview subjects and newspaper reports that refer to African workers and managers involved in different Chinese projects as lazy and incompetent. After reproducing them, she never addresses the utterances at all (with maybe one exception). Failing to follow up on statements like these is evasive: she's not saying anyone's lazy, but she's not saying the quotes are wrong, either. These kinds of tacit agreement and lazy explanation are ubiquitous in the book.
Still, I think this book is worth reading. It sheds light on an important topic, challenges myths, and raises further questions.
March 6, 2011
The People's Republic of China do a lot right in their dealing with the developing states of Africa. When investing in a country or granting aid the Chinese don't make political demands; they don't insist the recipient nation reform its economy to better pay bondholders; they stay for as long is necessary to get a project running and hand it over to the Africans, always ready to return if necessary. The Chinese build what African nations want--a railroad, a stadium, an office building for the Foreign Ministry--these are they types of "wasteful" projects that the International Monetary Fund and World Bank won't even consider. And commercial banks won't fund a project without the imprimatur of those transnational financial giants.
Technicians and executives from China work alongside their African counterparts. They live simply and frugally, often in barracks that they construct upon arrival. Managers and workers from the global North generally live in separate compounds, luxurious by African (or Chinese) standards and tend to supervise from afar--or at least as far as possible.
The Chinese are trusted because they aren't a former colonial power--indeed they can claim to be "post-colonial" themselves. They listen to what Africans want, even if those they are listening to are autocratic dictators. The Chinese drive hard bargains but do so in a businesslike fashion.
The future of Africa may well be in the East--the efforts of the United States and Western Europe have done little even after pouring billions of dollars in aid, debt cancellation and low interest loans into the same area.
Technicians and executives from China work alongside their African counterparts. They live simply and frugally, often in barracks that they construct upon arrival. Managers and workers from the global North generally live in separate compounds, luxurious by African (or Chinese) standards and tend to supervise from afar--or at least as far as possible.
The Chinese are trusted because they aren't a former colonial power--indeed they can claim to be "post-colonial" themselves. They listen to what Africans want, even if those they are listening to are autocratic dictators. The Chinese drive hard bargains but do so in a businesslike fashion.
The future of Africa may well be in the East--the efforts of the United States and Western Europe have done little even after pouring billions of dollars in aid, debt cancellation and low interest loans into the same area.
January 26, 2012
I thought this book was extremely useful in confronting the rampant rumors and misinformation about China's involvement in Africa. Most of what they are doing there is commercial investment, not aid, and their levels of investment remain much lower than those of the US, EU, etc. Furthermore, they are investing in everything, not just resource extraction, but also manufacturing, agriculture, etc. I have two critiques about the book though. 1) The first half of the book was pretty dense, and I really felt that the meat and potatoes of the book was the last five chapters. The first half was useful in explaining how China's aid/investment strategy developed, but its desnity discouraged others in our book club (all nerd economists) from getting farther. 2) I felt like she approached the topic from the point of view of a "China apologist." Even in the instances where she acknowledged China was doing something bad, there was always a follow-up of, "Someone else did it first," or, "They have learned from their mistake and they are trying harder not to mess up now." China's current posture with respect to Syria, Iran, etc. suggest otherwise. Worth a read, but I'm still a little skeptical.
September 26, 2019
Outdated but, still probably the best book I have read on the topic.
As a journalist I have reported on China in Africa and as Fulbright Fellow I worked with an African government on these issues. I read all I can on this subject and though this book is a bit out-dated it still is one of the best in terms of details and use of comparisons (but, maybe not the best well-written) unlike other such books it doesn't bore me with deep dives into random characters and sticks mostly to large policy questions.
As a journalist I have reported on China in Africa and as Fulbright Fellow I worked with an African government on these issues. I read all I can on this subject and though this book is a bit out-dated it still is one of the best in terms of details and use of comparisons (but, maybe not the best well-written) unlike other such books it doesn't bore me with deep dives into random characters and sticks mostly to large policy questions.
July 25, 2022
Sadly it didn't cover the Xi era with the Belt and Road. The two most interesting takeaways were first how much of the actual aid China hands relates to not recognizing Taiwan. The second was how much of the money China hands out is loans for the purchase of Chinese construction services. The system seems similar to what Japan used for Chinese projects Back In the Day. But while these loans can't me misappropriated by the recipient since the money is passed straight to the contractor Japan had a huge problem with bribery by contractors towards both Japanese and recipient politicians causing them to stop doing things this way. Over all I think it did a good job of selling its anti-alarmist without being panglossian. But again, I do wish it covered more recent history which seems to be a departure from prior practice.
December 8, 2023
Interesting as it provides data points and facts about the China's policy and help on African continent.
Yet, it is a one side story. There is a lack of broader geopolitical picture on the subject and how China is setting up its presence in Africa connected with other countries. Africa doesn't exists in a void.
It is also one sided picture. From the beginning the clear message is that China's help in Africa is not what people think it is. Yet, it is just brushing on potential issues with it ... I don't know if those issues around labor, environment, political infringement are there, but I would expect a discussion around it.
All in all - informative. I've learned somethings about China and Africa, yet it could be more, thus 3/5. Some additional sources are needed after this book.
Yet, it is a one side story. There is a lack of broader geopolitical picture on the subject and how China is setting up its presence in Africa connected with other countries. Africa doesn't exists in a void.
It is also one sided picture. From the beginning the clear message is that China's help in Africa is not what people think it is. Yet, it is just brushing on potential issues with it ... I don't know if those issues around labor, environment, political infringement are there, but I would expect a discussion around it.
All in all - informative. I've learned somethings about China and Africa, yet it could be more, thus 3/5. Some additional sources are needed after this book.
August 30, 2019
Convincing in its rejection of China's being an especially bad actor in Africa, relative to Western donors/investors. Not so convincing in its celebration of China's "creative destruction" on the continent (she herself invokes the phrase.) Her overall orientation seems to be neoliberal: Africans need to learn how to be good market agents, and China can help them with this. Sure there will be some labor abuses, corruption, and environmental depletion, but this will be worth it in the end, when African countries get to move to advanced positions in the "flying V." And eventually "corporate responsibility" will save the day, as Chinese companies strive to maintain their global reputations. I guess this is mainstream econo-development thinking, but I'm very skeptical.
January 18, 2021
It's very long, but very detailed. It's probably more detailed than I needed, but I forced myself to finish it. (I listened to the audio book version)
Deborah's research & experience is impressive! At first I thought the author was Pro-CCP, but could later see that she was fairly balanced (in my impression).
The trigger for me getting this book was hearing a lot about 'debt trap diplomacy' in the news when China invests in infrastructure in developing nations.
I learnt a lot about aid in Africa in general by listening to this book, including comparison to how western nations & organisation conduct aid in Africa.
This book steered me away from the 'CCP is evil & trying to take over the world' point of view, particularly when it comes to aid & investment in Africa. I ended up with the outlook that aid & development in Africa is a difficult & messy business in general, no matter who is doing it.
There are things that China does well in aid (hard working Chinese, Lower cost specialist, longer term focus). And things western donors do which I think are good (more transparency, more focus on recipient country ownership).
I would call this 'THE book on Chinese aid in Africa'.
Deborah's research & experience is impressive! At first I thought the author was Pro-CCP, but could later see that she was fairly balanced (in my impression).
The trigger for me getting this book was hearing a lot about 'debt trap diplomacy' in the news when China invests in infrastructure in developing nations.
I learnt a lot about aid in Africa in general by listening to this book, including comparison to how western nations & organisation conduct aid in Africa.
This book steered me away from the 'CCP is evil & trying to take over the world' point of view, particularly when it comes to aid & investment in Africa. I ended up with the outlook that aid & development in Africa is a difficult & messy business in general, no matter who is doing it.
There are things that China does well in aid (hard working Chinese, Lower cost specialist, longer term focus). And things western donors do which I think are good (more transparency, more focus on recipient country ownership).
I would call this 'THE book on Chinese aid in Africa'.
December 20, 2020
An old Chinese proverb:
摸着石头过河
"Cross the River by Feeling the Stones" - Confucius
China is still a developing country, and until very recently, China was still receiving world aid from other countries. Hence, it has to be more pragmatic in the way it gives aid. So, technically the support that China does not provide aid as such, but in a way what other countries would term as zero return loans or grants. Surprisingly, it is a reflection on how other countries helped China's earlier, in its most recent development, especially Japan.
The book goes into detail about the myths of China and it's aid program the why and how.
摸着石头过河
"Cross the River by Feeling the Stones" - Confucius
China is still a developing country, and until very recently, China was still receiving world aid from other countries. Hence, it has to be more pragmatic in the way it gives aid. So, technically the support that China does not provide aid as such, but in a way what other countries would term as zero return loans or grants. Surprisingly, it is a reflection on how other countries helped China's earlier, in its most recent development, especially Japan.
The book goes into detail about the myths of China and it's aid program the why and how.
February 12, 2025
I actually looked up "Deborah Brautigam" to check if she really exists. She does. And she's an academic. Which makes it surprising to me that a lot of the info in this book feels very anecdotal : "I visited this place..."; "A representative told me..." etc. There are some critical notes here and there, but often those are immediately smoothed out.
I had a very difficult time getting through the middle part of this book where I even felt it became downright insulting towards Africans: "Everything just falls apart when the Chinese leave..."; "Africans just don't want to work hard...", without any contextualisation.
I had a very difficult time getting through the middle part of this book where I even felt it became downright insulting towards Africans: "Everything just falls apart when the Chinese leave..."; "Africans just don't want to work hard...", without any contextualisation.
September 3, 2024
A book that debunks the idea of China's debt trap diplomacy as much as it is a critique of Western colonialism. Well-researched and fact-driven, Deborah Brautigam's approach is an exercise in bringing the world of academia into policy. Does an especially good job looking at how false narratives around Africa-China relations are spun by journalists reporting hyperboles versus data.
I loved the ethos of this book so much that I based a research project on it at Parsons School of Design: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_qB2... (for those curious)
I loved the ethos of this book so much that I based a research project on it at Parsons School of Design: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_qB2... (for those curious)
May 16, 2023
Good read though the data is largely outdated. It’s interesting how we still don’t have the more balanced view of China’s role on the continent that she advocated for so long ago. Sadly, in the current increasingly polarised world of the West v China I suspect sensationalism and an overly vilifying of China will only get worse.
May 23, 2024
You have to really care about China’s influence or the African country development to enjoy this book. There are so many details that weren’t relevant to me or my interest. It was very interesting to think that the African countries accept Chinese aid, because it doesn’t come with the influence of colonialism. Plus considering how the Chinese investment does help society within China.
January 5, 2019
Focused more on facts than alarmism. Perhaps tilted a little more towards China than being objective, but overall still a fairly good picture that isn't frequently presented by other literature on the topic.
May 12, 2019
This is a first rate book that puts a rather different spin on Chinese involvement in Africa than that which is normally seen, and one that appears to be based on solid research rather than rhetoric. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in development economics or geopolitics.
August 16, 2020
A slightly strained hybrid of reference text and travelogue, with the distraction of the author italicizing important phrases. I do hope Brautigam keeps writing about China and Africa though, I'd like to know what she thinks about the last decade.
November 7, 2020
Good book, learned more policy and discussion government contact details than I normally would. Challenging but a pretty good sample of experiences and realities that are usually warped here in the west.
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