Introduction to the Special Issue: Strategic Deployment of the China Model in Africa

Abstract

This introductory article examines the concept of strategic localization, which is central to the theme of this Special Issue of Politics & Policy. We focus on how African states, for regime survival and/or pragmatic reasons, reinterpret China's development discourse and preferences and implement them in their local contexts. We hypothesize that the China model of development has become a rhetorical commonplace used to legitimize policies perceived to be: (1) better for regime survival (e.g., no political conditionalities; dissemination of resources to elites); and (2) superior to other development models (more suitable for developing countries, better at developing strong states). The article will also give a synopsis of the other articles in the Special Issue—highlighting their main arguments and findings.Related Articles (in this Special Issue)Åberg, John H. S., and Derick Becker. 2020. “China as Exemplar: Justin Lin, New Structural Economics, and the Unorthodox Orthodoxy of the China Model.” Politics & Policy 48 (5).Babones, Salvatore. 2020. “China's Development Model: Can it be Replicated in Sub‐Saharan Africa?” Politics & Policy 48 (5).Hodzi, Obert. 2020. “African Political Elites and the Making(s) of the China Model in Africa.” Politics & Policy 48 (5).