Vol 1 (AAC) No 10 | CHINAAFRICA The Beijing development plan 3rd November 2008 Geographic and sectoral 'special economic zones' are China's keys to opening African markets to increased trade African states are competing to host China's special economic zones in the expectation they will bring in billions of dollars of investments and create tens of thousands of jobs -in...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 10 | AFRICAASIAFISHING In deep water 3rd November 2008 African states are at last taking action against the clandestine trawlers pillaging their fishing stocks Members of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa have committed themselves towards the establishment of a multinational coastguard service to patrol the largely ungoverned seas off Africa's...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 10 | AFRICAASIACOMMENTARY Washington, Beijing or African consensus? 3rd November 2008 Those African regimes seeking to emulate the Chinese model should remember that real development starts at home, argues Senegalese writer Adama Gaye Sports and politics rhymed perfectly as the organisation of the Beijing Olympics confirmed China's global rise. And the impressive harvest of medals won by China's athletes lends credibility to claims that...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 9 | CHINAAFRICA Developing and insuring prosperity 6th November 2008 The two banks backing up Chinese investment in Africa SINOSURE: China Export and Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) was established in December 2001 through a merger between the People's Insurance Company of China and the insurance arms of China Exim Bank....
Vol 1 (AAC) No 9 | CHINAAFRICA China's battling banks 6th November 2008 The mighty Chinese banking triad CHINA EXIM BANK: Established in 1994 under the Policy Banks Law, China Exim Bank is currently the third largest export credit agency in the world. China Exim Bank is tasked...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 9 | CHINAAFRICA Competing to finance Africa 6th November 2008 The slow motion revolution sweeping across China as the state-owned banks assert their independence from Beijing's directives will mean a much wider range of financing available to Africa. Commercial rivalries and diminishing coordination may make it harder to work with the banks, which remain at the core of China's Africa strategy. China Exim Bank and Sinosure are together expected to become the world's largest export credit agencies by 2010, according to the Export-Import Bank of the United States, just two decades after...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 9 | JAPANAFRICA The tough trade talks after Hokkaido 6th November 2008 Aid and trade are to be discussed as Africa looks to Japan to act on protectionist farming tariffs Tokyo's careful diplomacy ahead of the Hokkaido G8 summit the 7-9 July now faces its biggest test among African states: how can Japan explain its stance at the next round...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | JAPANAFRICA Here comes Hokkaido 6th November 2008 Africa policy on aid and commerce is central to Tokyo's diplomatic overhaul this year, as regional rivalries grow In many ways, the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Yokohama on 28-30 May was a dry run for Tokyo's Group of 8 summit in Hokkaido...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | JAPANAFRICA The new order 6th November 2008 The times they are a-changing for Japan's bureaucrats Behind the Yokohama summit scenery, Japanese civil servants continued with their reorganisation. Key to this is the Japan International Cooperation Agency under its President, Sadako Ogata, the driving force behind the...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | JAPANAFRICA Civil society tiptoes in 6th November 2008 Japanese NGOs under pressure From now on, Japan's non-governmental organisations will operate more like British NGOs such as Oxfam and Christian Aid, which manage substantial state aid funds. Local NGOs were barely represented at...