Vol 5 (AAC) No 5 | AFRICAASIA Chinese traders set up shop 28th February 2012 Small-scale Chinese merchants have established operations in major urban centres and rural outposts, leading to increased competition, violence and calls for government intervention
Vol 5 (AAC) No 3 | CHINAAFRICA The year of the dragon, again 18th January 2012 China’s trade with Africa has overtaken the USA’s trade with the continent and will soon rival that of the European Union Officials are building up expectations for the fifth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC V), which Beijing will host in the last quarter of this year. The showpiece summit, wh...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 3 | CHINAINTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUNDAFRICA How the IMF helps Chinese companies 18th January 2012 Beijing’s cooperation with the International Monetary Fund often goes unnoticed. China has been quietly working with the IMF to pressure African governments to remove fuel subsidie...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 3 | INDIAAFRICA India’s new frontier 18th January 2012 Many Indian businesses are not waiting for government support for their African ventures and are transforming Africa’s economic infrastructure The Indian government starts 2012 aiming to almost double bilateral trade with Africa from US$46 billion to $70 bn. by 2015. Such plans disguise the fact that, so far, India’s enga...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 3 | JAPANAFRICA Aggressive passivity 18th January 2012 The government is tied in knots, but that has not stopped the armed forces from taking a more active role in international peacekeeping missions Japan’s cycle of political instability and the long recovery from the tsunami and Fukushima nuclear crisis signal another year of inward focus for the governing elite. Prime Minist...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 3 | TAIWANAFRICA Recognition mission 18th January 2012 China’s favoured candidate stays in office, but Taiwan will struggle to participate in international bodies and overcome security challenges President Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang (KMT, Chinese Nationalist Party) won a second term on 14 January and now has another four years to carry forward his China-friendly policie...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 3 | AFRICAASIA Business doors open wide 18th January 2012 Ministers and business leaders from Kuala Lumpur to Hanoi are scouting for African deals as global political and economic power shifts eastward The Jakarta government expects 100% growth in exports to Africa over the next three years. They grew by 30% to US$3.5 billion in 2010 and should hit $4.5 bn. in 2011. More than hal...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 2 | UNITED STATESAFRICAASIA USA shapes Asia plans 13th December 2011 US officials are talking to their counterparts in Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul to find ways to coordinate policies and operations United States Assistant Secretary for African Affairs Johnnie Carson’s week-long trip to Asia in November reaffirmed Washington’s combative relationship with China and its desire t...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 2 | INDIAAFRICABRIEFING It’s energy that counts 13th December 2011 India’s resource-heavy trade with Africa may be poised to move into the service sector. Indian companies in banking, hotels, agriculture stand to benefit, but African companies wil...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 2 | JAPANAFRICABRIEFING Plant a seed 13th December 2011 Twenty-five years after its foundation in response to devastating Ethiopian famines, the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA), a Japanese-funded non-governmental organisation, is look...
