New actors in Africa: How is their entry affecting the continent’s relations with the EU?

This report documents a policy dialogue held in Johannesburg on 12 October 2011, co-organized by the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) and the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM). The meeting examined how the entry of emerging powers—specifically China, India, and Brazil (CIB)—affects Africa's relations with the European Union (EU) and other traditional partners, focusing on development strategies, triangular cooperation, natural resource management, and regional infrastructure.

• Traditional and emerging powers maintain distinct priorities in Africa: the EU focuses on "democracy and good governance, human rights and freedoms," while China, India, and Brazil (CIB) prioritize "harder aspects" such as "equipment and infrastructure." Despite tensions like EPA negotiations, traditional partners are viewed as having "unrivalled strengths" in social services, health, education, and governance promotion.
• Africa faces a significant infrastructure funding gap, requiring US$93 billion annually with a current shortfall of US$43 billion. To address this, the report suggests leveraging a broad pool of actors, including the BRICS, Gulf States, South Korea, and Turkey. The Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) is already managing approximately 20 international projects using mechanisms from the BRICS and the Export-Import Bank of South Korea.
• Triangular cooperation—involving a donor, a pivotal country, and a beneficiary—is increasing as middle-income countries take on donor roles. Examples include a Japan-Brazil project in northern Mozambique and a Trilateral Cooperation Fund (Trico) between Germany and South Africa. However, these partnerships often face "high establishment and transaction costs" and may lack sufficient involvement of the beneficiary country in decision-making.
• Natural resource management in Africa remains a challenge, with a need to move beyond minerals to include water, fisheries, and forestry. The International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) is cited as a unique triangular cooperation case that uses OECD due diligence guidelines and a regional mineral tracking and certification scheme to combat the "Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources (RINR)."
• Regional integration is considered essential for economic development and peace, though it is often hindered by slow implementation and diverging national interests. The report notes that infrastructure projects are more cost-effective when developed regionally rather than through bilateral ties, citing a Botswana-Mozambique-Zimbabwe initiative to ship coal to China as an example.
• Participants emphasized that Africa's negotiating strength depends on greater intra-African coordination and the development of a coherent engagement policy for emerging players. Without such coordination, there is a risk that new partnerships could result in a "new scramble for Africa by external actors."

APA

South African Institute of International Affairs (2011). New actors in Africa: How is their entry affecting the continent’s relations with the EU? https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/New-actors-in-Africa-How-is-their-entry-affecting-the-continents-relations-with-the-EU.pdf

Chicago

South African Institute of International Affairs. New actors in Africa: How is their entry affecting the continent’s relations with the EU? 2011. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/New-actors-in-Africa-How-is-their-entry-affecting-the-continents-relations-with-the-EU.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=South African Institute of International Affairs |title=New actors in Africa: How is their entry affecting the continent’s relations with the EU? |date=12 October 2011 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/New-actors-in-Africa-How-is-their-entry-affecting-the-continents-relations-with-the-EU.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{southafricaninstituteofinternationalaffairs2011new, author = {{South African Institute of International Affairs}}, title = {{New actors in Africa: How is their entry affecting the continent’s relations with the EU?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2011}, month = oct, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/New-actors-in-Africa-How-is-their-entry-affecting-the-continents-relations-with-the-EU.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }