China’s Africa Policy during the Xi Jinping Era (2012-2022)

Abstract

This study examines China's Africa policy during the Xi Jinping era, in the context of political, economic, security, and socio-cultural aspects. Africa is one of the regions of strategic importance, especially in terms of meeting the energy and raw material demands of global and regional actors, despite the significant lack of accumulated capital. In this regard, China has notably intensified its relations with African countries, particularly since the 1990s. China's approach to Africa began with collaborations based on economic interests, progressed to consolidating political relations through soft power elements, and the establishment of reliable relations in this process has also paved the way for China to become a security actor in the region. In the study, these aspects are considered as turning points and are examined through the process tracing method. Consequently, the main objective of this study is to analyze China's Africa policy during the Xi Jinping era specifically using the process tracing method.