Tag: Africa

Trade on Agenda for Chinese Leader’s State Visit to South Africa 

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johannesburg —  Chinese President Xi Jinping will be in South Africa next week for a major summit as well as an official state visit, at a time of increasing South African concern about persistent trade imbalances in the countries’ relationship, as well as worries about China’s domestic economy. Naledi Pandor, South African minister for international relations and cooperation, said last week that in 2022, trade with fellow BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China – accounted for 21%% of South Africa’s global trade, or $43 billion (830 billion rand). China,…

China and Wagner in Africa: Friends or Foes?

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JOHANNESBURG —  China’s “friendship without limits” with Russia may be tested in Africa, where Beijing’s long-established economic interests are at risk of clashing with the growing footprint of Moscow’s paramilitary Wagner Group. The most recent point of potential friction is Niger, where leaders of a July 26 military coup are reported by The Associated Press to have reached out to Wagner for help in cementing their hold on power. That news is unlikely to have been welcomed in Beijing, where a foreign ministry spokesman last week described the deposed president,…

Target ‘Niche’ Chinese Travelers, Not Numbers, Tourism Experts Tell Africa

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JOHANNESBURG —  African countries are investing heavily in trying to attract tourists from the world’s biggest outbound travel market, China, as they battle to recover from losses suffered during the travel bans of the COVID-19 pandemic. “COVID wiped out large parts of tourism industries, especially in poorer parts of the world like Africa,” said Mike Fabricius, a specialist in tourism management, consulting and marketing for his Johannesburg-based company, The Journey. “Some African countries rely heavily on the foreign exchange that tourists bring in and the money they spend in domestic…

China building overseas naval bases across Asia and Africa, say analysts

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China’s military may be planning to build a host of overseas naval bases, as it hopes to protect shipping routes and strengthen its ability to resist sanctions from the US and its allies, analysis has found. Hambantota in Sri Lanka, Bata in Equatorial Guinea and Gwadar in Pakistan are the three most likely locations for a Chinese naval base to be established in the next two to five years, according to an analysis by AidData, a US-based research institute, published on Wednesday. The report’s authors considered the amount of development…

Malawi Court Orders Chinese Child Exploiter to Leave

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Blantyre, Malawi —  A court in Malawi has ordered a Chinese national to leave the country in seven days after being found guilty of racial discrimination against children. The court had sentenced 26-year-old Lu Ke to one year in prison for selling exploitative videos of Malawian children. State lawyers say Lu Ke has since paid his victims compensation, but Malawian child rights campaigners say the punishment is not enough. The sentence comes after prosecutors amended some of the charges. Lu Ke, also known as Susu, was initially charged with child…

China’s Huawei Launches Innovation Center in South Africa

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Johannesburg —  South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday welcomed the opening of a new Huawei Innovation Center in Johannesburg, praising the Chinese company for its “confidence in the South African economy and its potential.” Ramaphosa said that adopting Huawei’s new technologies would help Africa “leapfrog into the Fourth Industrial Revolution.” Huawei was sanctioned in the United States in 2019 by then-President Donald Trump over concerns that Beijing was trying to monopolize networks and possibly use them for espionage. The company, however, already has a huge digital foothold in most…

Chinese Navy in Nigeria Amid Base Concerns

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Johannesburg, South Africa —  A rare visit to Nigeria this week by the Chinese navy is once again raising questions about Beijing’s military intentions in the strategically important Gulf of Guinea. Three Chinese warships have been docked in the port of Lagos for five days, with Nigerian and Chinese officials saying the visit is aimed at enhancing maritime security in the region, which is plagued by piracy. China already has a military base in Djibouti on the east coast of the African continent and U.S. officials have long speculated that…

Niger, China Discuss Uranium Mine and Other Deals

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Agadez, Niger —  The West African nation of Niger and China have been discussing deals that include an industrial park, an oil pipeline and a uranium mine. The Chinese ambassador to Niger, Jiang Feng, said China would build an industrial park that would impact industries including agro-food, manufacturing, mining and real estate, according to a tweet from Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum’s official account. It said the deal is a result of a China-Niger Investment Forum held in April. “China does what it says and says what it does,” said Jiang.…

Nigerian Experts Weigh In on Chinese Navy’s Visit to Nigeria

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ABUJA, NIGERIA — The Chinese navy is making a port call in Nigeria this week in a rare visit to West Africa, where Beijing has been seeking to expand its influence. Three warships of China’s People’s Liberation Army fleet arrived at Nigeria’s economic hub, Lagos, on Sunday, bringing about 700 sailors. The Nigerian Navy and Chinese Embassy on Monday said the five-day visit signified growing relations between Beijing and Africa, with the goal of tackling maritime security threats and maintaining stability in the Gulf of Guinea. Security analyst Chidi Omeje…