China’s Lending to Africa

Abstract

China scaled-up its lending and became the most prominent bilateral lender to Africa. China gained favor as a development partner due to its policy of non-interference and as a lender that can move faster than others. But this speed and ambivalence has also exposed it to a second shortcoming of too few questions being asked. China’s lending has attracted criticism, both from within African countries and from China’s rival global powers who have been watching it scale-up its engagement The main concerns for the west was the volume of Chinese lending and what China really wanted in return. China’s lending practices evolved as it found itself in more discussions with African countries about a greater magnitude of debt relief.