China's media presence in Africa is far more pervasive today than it was a decade ago, but not in the conventional way. Very few people consume China's traditional media offerings on the continent but millions, often unaware, engage with Chinese-produced messaging online on a near-daily basis.

The Chinese government has become very sophisticated in distributing its content to African news outlets which is then published on websites and social media platforms. Beijing also does extensive media outreach across Africa, providing journalists with training, equipment, and complementary trips to China.

Dani Madrid-Morales, a journalism lecturer at the University of Sheffield, has been tracking Chinese media engagement in Africa for more than ten years and joins Eric & Cobus to provide an update on the latest trends.

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander | @dmadrid_m

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

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Five of the 24 heads of state who attended this week's Belt and Road Forum in Beijing were from African countries, highlighting the prominent role the continent played at the event.

Many of the themes that emerged from the two-day forum align neatly with key African priorities related to new development finance and greater access to the Chinese market.

Join Geraud, Cobus, and Eric for a lively discussion on the key takeaways from this year's forum and whether African countries really do stand to benefit from the next iteration of the Belt and Road Initiative.

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Across Africa, public opinion about China has been quite positive overall with favorability ratings surpassing those of other major powers, including the United States. But not in Zimbabwe, at least among the country's elites, according to a new survey.

Only 37% of urban, educated Zimbabweans felt positive about China's impact on their country, significantly lower than the 63% favorability score that Afrobarometer recorded just a couple of years ago.

The new poll was conducted earlier this year by William Hautungimana and Haruka Nagao, both assistant professors at Oklahoma State University in the United States. William joins Eric & Cobus from Stillwater, Oklahoma to explain why China's approval rating is comparatively low and what's fueling the skepticism about the Chinese in Zimbabwe.

The Conversation: We asked 1,000 Zimbabweans what they think of China’s influence on their country − only 37% viewed it favorably: https://bit.ly/3rN8iCo

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander | @williamhautung1

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

Dramatic scenes this week in Italy where 7,000 people, mostly from Africa, came ashore after making the dangerous trek across the Mediterranean. It was a similar situation along the U.S.-Mexico border where 9,000 people crossed in a single day.

Poverty, in many cases, is fueling this latest migration surge due in part to the worsening economic conditions in many of these countries, particularly in Africa which is now the epicenter of twin climate and debt crises.

David McNair, executive director of Global Policy at the UK-based One Campaign, joins Eric & Cobus to discuss his latest research on African debt repayments and how stark inequities make it impossible for many of the world's poorest governments to do anything to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Sign up to receive the One.org Aftershocks weekly newsletter: data.one.org/aftershocks/

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander | @david_mcnair

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Chinese lending to African countries plunged to below a billion dollars in 2022, the lowest level in two decades, according to new data from the Global Development Policy Center at Boston University. The findings confirm that the era of Beijing financing large-scale infrastructure projects on the continent is now officially over.

Instead, Chinese creditors are focusing on smaller, more sustainable initiatives in green energy and telecommunications, among others. But this new, austere engagement strategy is going to fundamentally change China's relationship with the continent that, in many ways, was buttressed by once-generous loans.

Oyintarelado (Tarela) Moses, data analyst/database manager at the BU Global Development Policy Center, joins Eric & Cobus to discuss the new lending figures and explain what's behind the downturn.

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander | @tarelamoses

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oyintarelado-tarela-moses-05998968/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouthC

The Chinese Foreign Ministry was among the first major governments this week to welcome the African Union as the newest member of the G20. The big question now is what will the AU do now that it has a seat at the table?

Plus, Kenya's already dire economic situation gets worse and a new big-budget Chinese medical drama set in a fictitious African country released this week on major Chinese streaming platforms, the latest installment in the burgeoning genre of "Chinese savior" narratives.

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amit-jain-consultant

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new China-Africa Podcast mug!

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There's been a surge of activity in Africa-ASEAN relations in recent weeks highlighted by Indonesian President Joko Widodo's recent African tour and the Singapore-Africa Business Forum that took place earlier this month in the Lion City. Closer trade and investment ties make sense for both regions as the traditional engines of economic growth in China and Europe continue to slow.

Amit Jain, director of the Centre for African Studies at Nanyang Technological University, joins Eric & Cobus from Singapore to discuss the growing interest in Africa among Southeast Asian investors and why they've been so reluctant until now to get more engaged.

Plus, in their postscript, Eric & Cobus discuss this week's Africa Climate Summit and why it turned out to be yet another disappointing climate conference.

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amit-jain-consultant

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new China-Africa Podcast mug!

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Over the past 20 years, tens of thousands of kilometers of new railway lines have been built across Africa - much of it constructed and financed by China. But the days when Beijing paid big bucks to build these kinds of large-scale infrastructure projects in Africa have come to an end.

Today, China's development priorities on the continent are focused more on fostering industrialization and building smaller, greener projects mostly in the energy and telecommunications sectors. But even without the Chinese, a number of African governments are moving forward with ambitious plans to build vast regional rail networks.

Tim Zajontz, a lecturer in international relations at the University of Dresden, and Mandira Bagwandeen, a senior researcher at the University of Cape Town, join Eric & Cobus to discuss their new book on Africa's railway renaissance and China's indispensable role.

Amazon: Africa’s Railway Renaissance: The Role and Impact of China by Tim Zajontz, Pádraig Carmody, Mandira Bagwandeen, Anthony Leysens: https://amzn.to/45z0McL

The China-Global South Project: An Unforgettable Journey on East Africa’s Chinese-Built Railways, Old and New by Zhang Haotian: https://bit.ly/3YBRESd

X: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander | @tzajontz

LinkedIn:

Tim Zajontz: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-zajontz-phd-a27749121/

Mandira Bagwandeen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mandira-bagwandeen-07422328/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

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The once lifeless BRICS bloc got a big boost of energy this week with the addition of six new members including two additional African states from Egypt and Ethiopia. Together, African countries will now account for nearly a third of the 11-member group -- far more than any other international multilateral organization.

The announcement to enlarge the bloc came at the end of a high-profile three-day leaders summit in Johannesburg.

Adhere Cavince, a Nairobi-based China-Africa researcher, spent much of the week in Johannesburg attending events on the sidelines of the summit and joins Eric & Geraud to discuss what a new beefed-up BRICS means for Africa and the Global South more broadly.

X: @ChinaGSProject| @christiangeraud | @eric_olander | @cavinceworld

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/adhere-cavince-9039831a

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

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The Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed President Xi Jinping will travel to South Africa to attend the upcoming BRICS summit, the first time he'll visit Africa since 2018. Xi will be joined by three other of the group's leaders along with Russian President Vladimir Putin who will attend remotely.

The two main priorities at this year's gathering will be expanding the bloc's membership to include any of the two dozen countries that have applied to join and the creation of a new BRICS currency as an alternative to the U.S. dollar.

Emmanuel Matambo, research director at the University of Johannesburg's Africa-China Studies Centre, joins Eric & Cobus to discuss the upcoming summit and whether anything substantive will emerge from the discussions.

Twitter: @ChinaGSProject| @stadenesque | @eric_olander

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject

YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth

Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine

عربي: www.akhbaralsin-africia.com | @AkhbarAlSinAfr

Become a CAP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CAP Podcast mug!

www.patreon.com/chinaafricaproject