CHINA-AFRICA RELATIONS, A WIN-WIN SITUATION OR A YELLOW MAN’S BURDEN AN INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH

Abstract

China and Ethiopia have committed to a South-South Cooperation, which strives for mutual benefit and sustainable development. This would allow China to increase its influence on the African continent through the Belt and Road Initiative, while Ethiopia could supplement its own shortages to induce industrialization. Recent investment withdrawals however, indicate that this relationship has not yet achieved a sustainable form. Due to the complex nature of this problem and the widespread impact of potential improvements, this research has adopted an interdisciplinary approach to reveal the challenges faced by Ethiopia and China to achieve a sustainable win-win relationship. The three most relevant disciplines include development studies, economics and innovation science, as these disciplines represent the diplomatic, macro-economic and micro-economic perspectives respectively. These disciplines are sufficiently exhaustive to formulate a comprehensive understanding of the challenges regarding the complex relationship between China and Ethiopia. To facilitate interdisciplinary research, common-ground was established regarding the fundamental concepts knowledge, country performance and sustainable development. Building on this common-ground, the following key insights were formulated: (1) a sustainable relationship should make use of three channels of interaction; investments, shared production and shared ownership, to optimize technology and knowledge exchange. (2) Shared ownership allows the exchange of most valuable knowledge and expertise. Therefore, a sustainable relationship should attempt to focus on this channel of interaction. (3) Moving through the channels involves a trade-off between sovereignty and equality. Ultimately, a more comprehensive understanding is created such that China and Ethiopia should move towards shared production and ownership, while finding a substantiated balance between the diplomatic values sovereignty and equality, to safeguard human development and reduce risks of debt.