Maritime Security Strategy in Africa

Piracy is one of the most visible symptoms of complex system of maritime threats and challenges that, if left unaddressed, will threaten the viability of many African communities and even states: the pillaging of marine resources – especially fisheries – will have profound social and economic consequences for many years to come. Likewise, the illicit trafficking of weapons and narcotics will continue to weaken communities and states whose citizens, left with uncertain future prospects, continue to take the seas in large numbers as illigal/forced migrants.

The twelfth conference in the cycle,

Africa Sessions 12:

May 28th 2021 at 17:00, (GMT+1 – London Time).

The Eleventh conference in the cycle,

Africa Sessions 11:

China and Africa Cooperation and Development

May 1st 2021 at 11:00 AM, (GMT – London Time).

China and Africa celebrate this year 21 years of the establishment of the FOCAC platform, created in 2000 with the aim of fostering economic cooperation between the two sides. There is indeed a lot to celebrate as ties between the two sides have never been this strong. In a short period of time China overtook traditional commercial partners of the continent, becoming Africa’s largest trading partner by 2009. Trade between the two parts grew exponentially from $10 bn in 2001 to $209 bn in 2019. While China’s investment stock in the continent remains low ($44.4 bn) compared to European countries and the US ($705bn), it is catching up quickly as its investments flows to the continent have been growing at faster rates. But arguably the most astounding and consequential feature of China’s engagement in the continent is its role as a development funding provider. Throughout the past two decades China extended an estimated $148 billion in loans to Africa, far surpassing any other bilateral lender and comparing in scale only to the World Bank portfolio on the continent. On top of this, China has ramped up assistance in many other areas competing neck to neck and sometimes replacing traditional donors. The majority of African overseas undergraduate and graduate students now head to China rather than European capitals or the US. A growing share of Africa’s health assistance now comes from China, namely treating and preventing tropical diseases such as Malaria. More recently in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic China has been a key partner providing protecting equipment and medical personnel in the early stages and now a significant parcel of the vaccines. Other areas of cooperation where China has increasingly played a prominent role include knowledge and technology transfer in telecommunications, manufacturing and agriculture sectors, green technologies such as solar panels, etc…

The past twenty years of Chinese cooperation have shaken the dynamics inside the continent and revived the geopolitical and economic interest in Africa amongst old and emerging powers. But to what extent has this enhanced Africa’s agency and position in the world economy? Undeniably many parts of Africa have experienced accelerated economic dynamism and unprecedented growth rates because of closer ties with China. But have China’s alternative cooperation norms and practices been more successful than the neoliberal Washington Consensus impositions in promoting more structural changes such as diversifying African economies, helping climb up the value chain and expanding intra-African trade? And how has cooperation with China impacted African societies (poverty reduction, inequality), political systems (governance) and the environment?

The SIXTH conference in the cycle,

Africa after Covid-19:

AFRICA´S OUTLOOK FOR 2021,

took place on Saturday, December 12th, at 17h00 (GMT – London Time).