China and Africa’s Natural Resources: The Challenges and Implications for Development and Governance

The document examines China's strategic pursuit of resource security in Africa, primarily focusing on oil and strategic minerals. It details the 'Angola mode' of infrastructure-for-resources deals and the complex internal bureaucracy of Chinese resource diplomacy. While acknowledging positive contributions to hard infrastructure, the paper highlights concerns regarding debt sustainability, environmental degradation, and the potential for 'no strings attached' loans to undermine governance reforms in neo-patrimonial regimes.

• China's foreign policy is heavily driven by energy security, as it transitioned from a leading Asian oil exporter to the world's second largest consumer by 2003 and third largest importer by 2004.
• The 'Angola mode' is a specific funding arrangement where China provides loans for infrastructure development in exchange for natural resources, typically without the conditionalities required by Western donors.
• China's imports from Africa are highly concentrated on primary products, with oil accounting for 80% of the total export value in Sino-African trade.
• China has developed significant dependencies on Africa for specific minerals, importing 80% of its cobalt and 40% of its manganese from the continent.
• Chinese resource diplomacy is characterized by a fragmented internal bureaucracy involving the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), and various state-owned enterprises (SOEs), leading to poor coordination.
• In the Democratic Republic of Congo, China implemented a $9 billion package in 2008, the largest of its kind for a non-oil producing country, linking infrastructure rehabilitation to mining concessions.
• Chinese investments have positively impacted development by addressing the infrastructure backlog, including financing 10 major hydropower projects that will increase sub-Saharan Africa's total capacity by 30%.
• There are significant concerns that China's 'no strings attached' approach may embolden neo-patrimonial regimes and allow them to circumvent transparency requirements from the IMF and World Bank.
• Chinese companies have been criticized for violating labour and environmental standards, including the illegal use of child labour in Katanga, DRC.

APA

Alden, C., & Alves, A. C. (2009). China and Africa’s Natural Resources: The Challenges and Implications for Development and Governance. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Occasional-Paper-41.pdf

Chicago

Alden, Chris, and Ana Cristina Alves. China and Africa’s Natural Resources: The Challenges and Implications for Development and Governance. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2009. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Occasional-Paper-41.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Alden |first1=Chris |last2=Alves |first2=Ana Cristina |title=China and Africa’s Natural Resources: The Challenges and Implications for Development and Governance |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=September 2009 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Occasional-Paper-41.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{alden2009china, author = {Alden, Chris and Alves, Ana Cristina}, title = {{China and Africa’s Natural Resources: The Challenges and Implications for Development and Governance}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2009}, month = sep, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Occasional-Paper-41.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }