CACS Policy Brief No 6

President Cyril Ramaphosa, President Xi Jinping, and African heads of state at the opening of the 2018 Beijing FOCAC Summit, 2 September 2018.

The 2018 FOCAC Summit: Prospects for an African Multilateral Policy towards China in a Changing Global Economy

Bongane Gasela, researcher, Centre for China-Africa Studies

This Policy Brief analyses the 2018 FOCAC Ministerial Conference and Summit held in Beijing, China, from 2 to 4 September 2018. The author starts with a brief overview of its setting, notably the burgeoning trade war between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the United States (US) and its implications for Africa. Next, he examines China’s flagship initiative known as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and how this could be used for the betterment of Africa. Following this, he analyses the two major outcomes of the FOCAC Summit, the Beijing Declaration and the Beijing Action Plan, plus China’s US$60 billion pledge towards implementing  the Action Plan. He concludes by arguing that while the Summit might have addressed certain issues vital to a productive Africa-China partnership, some opportunities were missed.

To download the Policy Brief, click here.

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