China in Africa: A Balanced View

A lot has been said about China’s interest in Africa and most of it has been negative.  Dr. Zhang sees two conflicting attitudes:  On one hand, there are some who view China as “evil” no matter what and therefore its involvement in Africa must be sinister and self-serving. On the other hand, many assume that China is increasingly prosperous and therefore expect that China should make some contribution to African nations.  Dr. Zhang seeks to reconcile these differing views by providing a balanced perspective on China-Africa relations.  Ms. Jennifer Cooke, Director of the Africa Program, will serve as the discussant and Ms. Bonnie Glaser, Senior Fellow with the Freeman Chair in Chian Studies, will moderate the discussion.

Dr. ZHANG Chun is currently a Visiting Fellow at the Freeman Chair in China Studies, CSIS, and Deputy Director of the Center for West Asian and African Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies (SIIS), one of China’s leading think tanks. His current research focus is on China-Africa relations, comparison of leading nations’ Africa policy, and Sub-Saharan African security and politics. He was a Visiting Scholar at Chatham House (London) in 2009 and the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) in 2011.