China’s Aid in Global South Development Cooperation: A Study of Its Evolution

Abstract

Listen

Translate article

The surge in China’s foreign aid over the past two decades has sparked intense debates and criticisms in the global development domain. These mainly focus on the modus operandi and impact of China’s aid projects. In general, behavior and its modification are dynamic functions of knowledge, capability and institutional construct, which are governed by the prevailing value system in response to evolving environmental conditions. In this sense, foreign aid is no exception. This paper seeks to contextualize these debates and criticisms, identify the transition and continuity of the focus, features and manifestations of China’s foreign aid policy, and pinpoint the challenges by analyzing its evolving motivation and paradigm. The findings indicate that China’s aid strategy is dynamic, driven by more than mere diplomatic or economic objectives. The country’s growing economic strength and shifting domestic and geopolitical priorities are also at play, driving its foreign aid policy through a process of learning and adaptation. This has evolved through four distinct phases, including a shift from genuine benefits to mutual benefits for recipients, a transition from project-specific initiatives to broader supply chain collaborations, a reorientation from a focus on infrastructure and utilities to prioritizing value and impact, and from being state-driven to market-driven dynamics. This evolution, with its many contributions to global development initiatives, is accompanied by persisting challenges, i.e. governance and transparency, to which this dynamic learning process is to be continued.