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The China-Global South Project

Twice-weekly discussion about China's engagement across Africa and the Global South hosted by journalist Eric Olander and Asia-Africa scholar Cobus van Staden in Johannesburg.

The China in Africa Podcast

Kenya and China have reached a groundbreaking agreement to restructure $3.5 billion in railway loans, converting them from U.S. dollars into Chinese yuan. The move could save Kenya $215 million in debt servicing costs and marks the first time an African nation has shifted major sovereign debt into RMB — a potential model for other Global South countries.
 
In this episode, Eric & Géraud unpack what this deal really means for Kenya, China, and the broader narrative around China's “debt-trap diplomacy.” They explore how the agreement challenges old assumptions, what it says about the future of RMB internationalization, and whether other countries — like Indonesia — could follow suit.
 
Chapters:
 00:00 – Introduction
 02:45 – How the Kenya–China debt swap works
 09:30 – Why this deal matters for China’s RMB ambitions
 15:10 – The myth of the “debt trap” revisited
 25:40 – Lessons for other Global South economies
 34:00 – Cameroon’s shifting trade ties with China and France
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Kenya’s China Debt Deal Challenges Old Narratives

More than six months after 50,000 liters of toxic water from a Chinese-run mining site spilled into Zambia's Kafue River, there's still no resolution to what's become a massive environmental crisis. 
 
The government is siding with the company, Sino-Metals, while local farmers and activists remain unsatisfied with the response and have launched multiple lawsuits, including one seeking $80 billion in damages (more than twice the entire size of the Zambian economy).
 
That's sparked outrage on Chinese social media platforms like WeChat and Weibo, where commentators are fuming over what they perceive as blatant extortion of a Chinese company.
 
Eric, Cobus, and Géraud are joined this week by CGSP's Critical Minerals Editor, Obert Bore, to discuss the latest in the Kafue River situation and why Chinese social media is reacting so angrily.
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud | @stadenesque
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Chinese Online Outrage Over $80 Billion Zambia River Suit

In the weeks since Chinese President Xi Jinping announced the new Global Governance Initiative (GGI) during a speech at the SCO summit in Tianjin, Beijing’s propaganda apparatus has been working overtime to build support for the new plan, particularly in Africa, Latin America, and other developing regions.
 
The GGI is the latest in a series of Chinese global initiatives that also focus on development, human rights, and security, which it’s using to stake a larger claim for international leadership at a time when the U.S.-led system is collapsing.
 
Brian Wong, an assistant professor at Hong Kong University and a leading scholar on Chinese global governance, joins Eric to discuss what Beijing is hoping to accomplish with the GGI and its other governance initiatives.
 
SHOW NOTES:
 
 • 

Routledge: Moral Debt: Defending a New Account of Reparative Justice by Brian Wong
 • 
 • 

Hong Kong University Press: Towards a Future for BRICS+ edited by Heiwai Tang and Brian Wong
 • 
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

China's Play for Global Governance Leadership

China-Africa trade in the first eight months of the year increased by 15% to more than $220 billion, on track to break another annual record. A significant portion of that growth, however, stemmed from a surge in Chinese exports to African countries, exacerbating an already substantial $60 billion African trade deficit with China.
 
South Africa, by far, is China's most important trade partner on the continent, and it is attempting to close that gap by increasing its exports of agricultural products to China. The problem, however, is that it will take a lot more than selling fruits and vegetables to narrow the country's gaping trade deficit. In the meantime, local producers are facing growing pricing pressure from the surge of low-cost Chinese imports.
 
Eric & Cobus discuss the difficult position that many African countries are facing in this new, more competitive trade landscape.
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Africa Buys More From China Than Ever. That’s a Problem.

Africa was especially hard hit by Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" tariffs, which ended years of duty-free access to the U.S. and triggered a rush to find new markets. China's announcement that it will remove all tariffs on African imports undoubtedly provides some relief, but it shouldn't be the only answer, say experts. 
 
India, Southeast Asia, and Japan all offer tremendous opportunities for African exporters, if they know how to break into these markets.
 
Géraud traveled from Mauritius to Singapore to join a conversation at the Centre for African Studies at Nanyang Technological University, where he was joined by the center's director Amit Jain and Veda Vaidyanathan, a fellow at the Centre for Social and Economic Progress in New Delhi, for a lively conversation on the future of Africa-Asia relations beyond China.
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Africa-Asia Relations Beyond China

China is steadily expanding its security presence in Africa through deeper military ties, weapons sales, and multinational deployments as UN Peacekeepers. In fact, China is now the largest arms supplier to Sub-Saharan Africa, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
 
There are also mounting concerns over the protection of Chinese personnel on the continent who have been regular targets of kidnapping and ransom by bandits in the DRC, Nigeria, and South Africa, among other countries.
 
Lungani Hlongwa, editor of the China-Africa Security Radar on Substack, joins Eric & Cobus to discuss why African militaries are increasingly turning to China and away from traditional partners in the U.S. and Europe.
 
SHOW NOTES:
 
 • Subscribe to The China-Africa Security Radar: 
https://cafradar.substack.com/ Politico: • 
 Pentagon plan prioritizes homeland over China threat • by Paul McLeary and Daniel Lippman
 The China-Global South Project: • 
 Q&A: China’s ‘Feeling the Stones’ Approach to African Security Takes Shape 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @agmutambo
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

China’s Gradual but Growing Security Influence in Africa

The Kenyan government is under mounting pressure from the United States over its close ties with China. Influential lawmakers in Washington are furious over comments made by President William Ruto during a visit to Beijing earlier this year, where he said Kenya and China will be the "architects of a new world order."
 
The remark was particularly upsetting for some in Washington, given Kenya's role as a Major Non-NATO Ally.
 
Aggrey Mutambo, Africa editor at the Nation newspaper, joins Eric & Cobus from Nairobi to discuss how the Kenyan government is responding and what it's doing to maintain stable ties with both major powers.
 
SHOW NOTES:
 
 Aggrey Mutambo's article index at the Nation newspaper. 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @agmutambo
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Kenya Caught Uncomfortably Between the U.S. and China

China’s presence in Africa is often debated through different lenses. Two prominent angles to examine this relationship are through finance and security. Under finance, Beijing has become the continent’s biggest lender, funding roads, ports, and railways.
 
 
 
In security discussions, China’s engagement with Africa is increasing in trade and training.
 
 
 
China is advancing the Global Security Initiative (GSI), a framework that emphasizes sovereignty, non-interference, and development as the foundation for peace, a sharp contrast to Western, military-led approaches. But how is this vision received in Africa, and what does it mean for the continent’s security future?
 
 
 
In this episode, Geraud is joined by Paul Nantulya, a research associate at the Africa Strategic Studies Center in Washington, D.C, to explore these questions with a focus on African agency: how leaders negotiate loans, manage partnerships, and interpret China’s security proposals.
 
 
 
The answers, as Paul explains, reveal a more complex picture than dependency or partnership alone.
 
SHOW NOTES:
 
 Africa Center for Strategic Studies: • 
 Africa as a Testing Ground for China’s Global Security Initiative • by Paul Nantulya 
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander 
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH AND ARABIC:
 Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 Arabic: عربي: www.alsin-alsharqalawsat.com | @SinSharqAwsat
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Africa is a Testing Ground for China’s Global Security Initiative

Who shapes Africa’s story? Zambia’s media offers a rare window into how local voices frame global powers like China, the U.S., Japan, and South Africa.
 
From debates on debt and development to questions of governance and influence, the coverage reveals both common threads and striking differences with other regions.
 
Natsuko Imai Kanayama, a researcher at the JICA Ogata Sadako Research Institute for Peace and Development in Tokyo joins Eric & Géraud to share insights from her comparative study, highlighting how Zambian media narratives can challenge global assumptions about power, partnerships, and agency.
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH AND ARABIC:
 Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 Arabic: عربي: www.alsin-alsharqalawsat.com | @SinSharqAwsat
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

How Zambian Media Frames China, the U.S., Japan, and South Africa

There's a Chinese proverb that says, “If you want to get rich, build a road first.” That philosophy has guided China's development strategy in Africa for much of the past 25 years, that's led to the construction of more than 100,000km of new roads across the continent.
 
We wanted to find out, though, if it's true: does a new road actually pave the way for prosperity, as they say it does? So, we asked Malawi-based journalist Raphael Mweninguwe to visit two highways, the M1 and M26, to speak with local residents and shopkeepers about whether their lives have improved since the Chinese built these highways.
 
Raphael joins Eric from the Malawian capital, Lilongwe, to discuss his report that was published on CGSP this week and explain why the question about whether the road helped improve their lives doesn't have a simple answer.
 
SHOW NOTES:
 
 The China-Global South Project: • 
 Chinese-Built Roads in Malawi Bring Hope but Not the Riches Many Expected • by Raphael Mweninguwe
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander 
 
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH AND ARABIC:
 Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 Arabic: عربي: www.alsin-alsharqalawsat.com | @SinSharqAwsat
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

If You Want to Get Rich, Build a Road. Testing China’s Theory in Africa

There's been a lot of talk in recent years about the new "small and beautiful" doctrine that now guides China's Belt and Road Initiative. The problem is that a lot of people still do not understand what it actually means in practice.
 
President Xi Jinping first unveiled the concept at the Third Belt-and-Road Symposium in 2021 when he said that China's overseas development finance would focus more attention on "better connectivity" for telecommunications, energy, and financial services.
 
China has also had to scale down its financing of large-scale infrastructure projects because of economic challenges at home and debt sustainability issues among borrowing countries.
 
Lui Kanyi, a Beijing-based project finance lawyer and head of China at a large international law firm, has been closely following the transformation of the BRI for many of his Chinese clients. Kanyi joins Eric & Cobus to discuss the "small and beautiful" trend and what people should know about the future direction of the BRI.
 
JOIN THE DISCUSSION:
 X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @stadenesque
 Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject
 YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth
 
FOLLOW CGSP IN FRENCH AND ARABIC:
 Français: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine
 Arabic: عربي: www.alsin-alsharqalawsat.com | @SinSharqAwsat
 
JOIN US ON PATREON!
 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 CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

[GLOBAL SOUTH] Update on the State of the BRI in the New "Small and Beautiful" Era

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