China’s Rising Role in Africa: Is it a Greater Challenge to United States’ Democracy Promotion Agenda in Africa or an Opportunity?
Dr. Akim Ajieth Buny
College of Management Sciences, John Garang University in Bor, South Sudan.
E-mail: akim.bunny@gmail.com
Abstract
The African continent is the second largest continent in the world after Asia and consists of 54 countries of which forty-one of them are former British colonies while the rest were colonized by other European powers except Liberia and Ethiopia. The aim of this paper is to explore some of the contested terrain involved in the relationships between the People Republic of China, United States and the African countries and what does China’s “Africa Policy” places on the U.S. democracy promotion agenda in the African continent. Furthermore, the aim is also to assess the U.S. reactions to those types of strategies put forth by China and how those reactions from Washington and other Western Capitols have impacted the general well-being of vulnerable groups (so called “concerned groups”) in Africa in terms of development aid, economic reconstruction, health projects and relief. Finally, the interest in the matter is to determine the motivations and likely directions of China’s “Africa Policy” going forward by examining the past and current influences on China, identifying what China’s current foreign policies are, as well as, projecting China’s future policies towards Africa and the likely U.S. responses. The question this research really trying to ask is “Is China’s relentless search for oil, strategic minerals, new markets in Africa for its goods and increased political influence poses numerous strategic challenges on the United States’ democracy promotion business in the African continent or not”?