Feeding the dragon: exploring the conflicting drivers behind China's involvement in Africa

This paper explores China’s most recent entry into Africa. What drives political leaders, entrepreneurs, and workers as they do business in Africa on behalf of China? What is the nature of Chinese engagement on the continent? Are the Chinese neo-colonialists, development partners, or economic competition for Africans? By looking at Chinese foreign and domestic policy decisions, China’s deteriorating social and environmental conditions, as well as the background and characteristics of the upcoming generation of Chinese leaders, the author concludes that China’s overall intentions in Africa are motivated by a sincere desire for mutual growth and benefit; however, when Chinese and African interests collide, China’s need for continued growth and domestic harmony usually trumps local concerns. African leaders are not without recourse though. The case studies of Sudan and Zambia will illustrate how pressure from African nations is slowly changing the Chinese way of doing business in Africa.