The latest FOCAC displayed China’s fresh efforts to enhance its soft power, as well as its engagement with the African countries. The meeting underlined some new areas of future cooperation and China’s commitment towards a win-win partnership with Africa.
The 8th ministerial conference of the Forum for China –Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), was held on 29-30 November 2021 in Dakar, Senegal. China was represented by Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The meeting was held in the backdrop of COVID-19 pandemic, debt distress in some African countries and increasing contestation between major powers. The core theme of the meeting was to “Deepen China-Africa Partnership and Promote Sustainable Development to build a China –Africa Community with a Shared Future in the New Era”. The 8th FOCAC highlights health, green development and climate change and security as the key areas of cooperation between China and African countries in the foreseeable future.
FOCAC, established in 2000, is a triennial high-level forum between China and the African countries (all except Eswatini, which continues to maintain relations with Taiwan). In the last 21 years, eight editions of the FOCAC have been held. Of these meetings, three, were elevated to summit level (2006, 2015 and 2018) and were attended by heads of state and government. Some of these meetings have been held in China (Beijing; 2000, 2006, 2012, 2018) others in Africa (Addis Ababa, 2003, Sharm el Sheikh, 2009 and Johannesburg, 2015). The 2021 FOCAC meeting was the first to be held in a West African country. Over the years FOCAC has paved the way towards a strong partnership between China and Africa. While in the initial years the relationship focused on enhancing trade with African countries, primarily imports of natural resources. From 2006 onwards, the relationship went beyond trade to investment, development finance and infrastructure. In terms of financial support, during 2015 FOCAC, China peaked its commitments with the pledge of US $ 60 billion financial assistance to African countries and continued the same pledge in 2018 FOCAC.1 While development finance and infrastructure development continued as priority areas, in 2012, issues of security have been added as an important agenda item of China- Africa partnership.
During the 8th FOCAC meeting, several important announcements were made and four important resolutions were adopted. They include, the Dakar Action Plan, the China- Africa Cooperation Vision 2035, the Sino-African Declaration on Climate Change and the Dakar Declaration of the 8th ministerial conference of the FOCAC. The most anticipated news was regarding the financial pledges. The total commitment turns out to be round $40 billion, a dip compared to $60 billion in 2018 FOCAC meeting. However, in opinion of some, this does not include the cost of vaccines and other pledges, so actual commitment may be much more than $40 billion. More importantly, during the conference, President Xi announced nine focus areas for the first three years of the China Africa Vision 2035. They include health, poverty reduction and agriculture, trade, investment, digital innovation, green development, capacity building, people to people exchanges and peace and security. Amongst these a few priority areas stand out.
President XI Jinping announced in a live video address that China will provide 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine to African countries.2 About 60 per cent of these will be delivered directly and rest will be produced jointly by China in select African countries. This signals China taking a step towards enhancing its health diplomacy in the region. Health has been an area of cooperation between China and Africa from the first FOCAC meeting, The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in this cooperation. Initially during the pandemic, China supplied African countries with masks, PPE kits and other medical equipment, sent medical teams to several countries and later supplied vaccines. However Chinese medical diplomacy in the region did not always generate a positive response in the continent. The Chinese discrimination against Africans based in Guangzhou province in China during the pandemic led to a strong response from some African diplomats.3 While China did step up its health diplomacy in the continent during the pandemic, its supply of masks and PPE kits was more effective than vaccine diplomacy.4 The 8th FOCAC pledges may go a long way in boosting China’s image in the continent and bolstering African capacities in vaccine production.
Another major announcement made at the 8th FOCAC was on promoting green development. As the world grapples with climate change, China is advocating green and low carbon development to the African countries. This was mentioned by President Xi in his address as well in the path breaking Sino- African Declaration on Climate Change adopted at the meeting.5 This declaration is path breaking as for the last three decades, China’s development cooperation with African countries has focused on large infrastructure projects, such as, railways, roads, coal fired and hydro power plants, airports, ports, stadiums etc. under the rubric of Belt and Road initiative (BRI) with scant focus on sustainable development. At Dakar, China reiterated its promise to stop funding overseas coal fired power plants6 and also emphasised promotion of renewable energy development. Another significant pledge is regarding sharing low carbon technologies particularly space technology for agriculture growth, environmental monitoring, averting disasters, mitigation and climate adaptation with African countries.
During the FOCAC, President Xi announced that China will undertake several security projects in Africa, continue, military assistance and training, peacekeeping cooperation, support regional efforts for security and countering terrorism in the next three years.7 Similarly the China – Africa Dakar Action plan identified military and police cooperation, counterterrorism and law enforcement as priorities. These plans suggest the increasing focus on peace and security issues under FOCAC.8 Initially, security issues were not part of FOCAC engagement. These issues found a mention for the first time in the 2012 FOCAC by the announcement of China- Africa Partnership for Peace and Security.9 However it was in 2015 FOCAC that China started financial support to the Africa Peace and Security Architecture. Over the years China’s growing economic engagement in the continent has led to increase in involvement in security sphere. This includes anti- piracy patrols, involvement in UN peace keeping, training and supply of arms to various African countries. Large Infrastructure projects particularly, oil and gas, and growing threats against Chinese workers deployed in these development projects has also led to presence of Chinese security firms in these countries. The announcements at the 8th FOCAC indicate that peace and security will remain an important priority for China in the years to come.
In conclusion, the latest FOCAC displayed China’s fresh efforts to enhance its soft power, as well as its engagement with the African countries. The meeting underlined some new areas of future cooperation and China’s commitment towards a win-win partnership with Africa.
*Ms. Ruchita Beri is Senior Research Associate and Coordinator, Africa, Latin America, Caribbean & United Nations Centre at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA), New Delhi.