Xi pledges $50 billion for Africa to shore up China’s influence

President Xi Jinping unveiled a raft of economic sweeteners for Africa, showcasing China’s commitment to strengthening its sway over a continent seen as key to his geopolitical ambitions.

Xi vowed to provide $50 billion in financial support and better market access in a speech to leaders from some 50 African nations Thursday. He also pledged to triple China’s credit lines to $30 billion at the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation’s opening ceremony in Beijing, despite an economic slowdown at home that’s stifling fiscal spending.

“This is not the kind of pledge that is going to finance large-scale mega infrastructure projects in Africa,” said Eric Olander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project, but the amount “does enough to preserve the narrative that China is as committed to Africa as it’s been in the past.”

Xi didn’t specify where or how the money would be deployed, but Olander said the credit would likely finance purchases of “vast quantities of solar panels, batteries and EVs” - the “new three” green sectors Beijing is betting on to propel the world’s No. 2 economy out of a housing slump.

The largess comes as some African leaders have expressed a desire to rebalance their economic ties with the world’s second-largest economy. China’s trade surplus with Africa rose to a record $64 billion last year, with exports surging to a new high of $173 billion, while imports moderated from 2022.

“As South Africa, we would like to narrow the trade deficit and address the structure of our trade,” South African President Cyril Ramaphosa told Xi on Monday. “We urge for more sustainable manufacturing and job-creating investments.”

Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye also acknowledged an imbalance in ties, but praised Beijing’s work addressing it.

“I’m pleased to see that China is actively promoting a greater balance in trade with Africa,” he said, citing Beijing’s efforts to improve the continent’s export capacity including by facilitating quarantine clearance of products to China.

The three-day conclave highlights Beijing’s ongoing strategy of positioning itself as the leader of the Global South, as Xi tries to challenge the US-led world order. The Chinese president has traveled to the African continent five times since taking power. Neither Joe Biden nor his predecessor Donald Trump - who disparaged African nations while in office - visited during their terms.

“China and Africa’s joint pursuit of modernization will set off a wave of modernization in the Global South,” Xi told African officials including Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, Zambian leader Hakainde Hichilema, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Felix Tshisekedi.

In his speech, Xi mapped a vision for win-win ties and chided unnamed Western nations for having inflicted “immense sufferings” on developing countries. He also said China would waive all tariffs for 33 low-income African economies and upgrade diplomatic relations.

The tariff exemption will apply to all least-developed nations with official ties with China, Xi said, meaning countries including Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Cambodia will benefit, while Tuvalu and Haiti won’t be eligible because they recognize Taipei over Beijing. China had previously given zero-tariff access to at least six low-income African countries and promised to expand such treatment.

The remarks came after Xi hosted a gala dinner the night before for the continent’s most powerful politicians, illustrating the red-carpet treatment lavished on African leaders in China. Xi met with at least 26 African leaders in the days before the event, as he sought to maintain close ties across the continent.

Over the past decade, Chinese lending fueled an infrastructure boom across Africa as part of Xi’s flagship Belt and Road Initiative, but that slowed to a trickle during the pandemic before picking up again last year. Beijing has faced criticisms its lending has saddled African nations with too much debt.

Rising trade barriers in Western countries over claims the world’s No. 2 economy is exporting its overcapacity has also pressed the need for China to find friendly partners to provide fresh markets for its shipments.

Xi touted China as a partner in African countries’ transition to renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, saying it would help Africa build “green growth engines.” The continent that struggles with reliable power was the fastest growing region for Chinese exports of solar panels last year.

Separately, China said it would grant 1 billion yuan in military assistance to Africa that will help train 6,000 military personnel and another 1,000 police and law enforcement officers.

Xi also pledged to ramp up government interactions, including by inviting 1,000 members of African political parties to China to “deepen exchanges of experience in party and state governance.”

Such interactions will give African nations the chance to learn from China’s efficient bureaucracy, said Drew Thompson, a former Pentagon official.

“It’s giving African countries more choices,” he added. “But then ultimately those militaries and the leaders of those countries will decide what models work for them.”

—With assistance from Jing Li, Sarah Chen, Yujing Liu, Rebecca Choong Wilkins, Dan Murtaugh, Ocean Hou, Stephen Engle, James Mayger and Lucille Liu.