Основные направления политики помощи КНР и Франции странам Африки в период пандемии COVID-19

Abstract

The paper presents a comparative analysis of the motives and approaches towards promoting aid policy in Africa by the Popular Republic of China (PRC) and France, specifically during the COVID-19 pandemic. France is a traditional donor and a historically influential player in Africa. China is considered a relatively new actor in the region, which influence is constantly growing, thus, creating research interest. The article considers both general and separate specific aid policy directions: common partnership programs of PRC and France with African countries, forms of international cooperation between the countries and Chinese and French pandemic containment and mitigation initiatives. The results of the study demonstrate that Africa is the region of the highest priority for the aid policies of both China and France on the key parameters. Both countries focus on the development of African countries, they just see the process differently. France uses the historical ties and development goals (such as combating global inequality) as an advantage for its positioning in the region whereas China talks about the community of interests of developing countries in South–South cooperation and UN sustainable development goals. In addition, China includes concessional loans into aid policy and also promotes its foreign policy concepts (e.g. ‘community of common destiny’). At the same time, both countries are interested in the economic benefits of their aid (in particular, in access to natural resources). Conceptual differences in the basic approaches of the PRC and France to understanding aid policy lead to significant practical differences in the aid structure and the formats for policies implementation by the two states.