Vol 1 (AAC) No 9 | CHINAAFRICA Competing to finance Africa 6th November 2008 The slow motion revolution sweeping across China as the state-owned banks assert their independence from Beijing's directives will mean a much wider range of financing available to Africa. Commercial rivalries and diminishing coordination may make it harder to work with the banks, which remain at the core of China's Africa strategy. China Exim Bank and Sinosure are together expected to become the world's largest export credit agencies by 2010, according to the Export-Import Bank of the United States, just two decades after...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 9 | JAPANAFRICA The tough trade talks after Hokkaido 6th November 2008 Aid and trade are to be discussed as Africa looks to Japan to act on protectionist farming tariffs Tokyo's careful diplomacy ahead of the Hokkaido G8 summit the 7-9 July now faces its biggest test among African states: how can Japan explain its stance at the next round...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | JAPANAFRICA Here comes Hokkaido 6th November 2008 Africa policy on aid and commerce is central to Tokyo's diplomatic overhaul this year, as regional rivalries grow In many ways, the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Yokohama on 28-30 May was a dry run for Tokyo's Group of 8 summit in Hokkaido...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | JAPANAFRICA The new order 6th November 2008 The times they are a-changing for Japan's bureaucrats Behind the Yokohama summit scenery, Japanese civil servants continued with their reorganisation. Key to this is the Japan International Cooperation Agency under its President, Sadako Ogata, the driving force behind the...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | JAPANAFRICA Civil society tiptoes in 6th November 2008 Japanese NGOs under pressure From now on, Japan's non-governmental organisations will operate more like British NGOs such as Oxfam and Christian Aid, which manage substantial state aid funds. Local NGOs were barely represented at...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | SINGAPOREAFRICA The wealthy autocratic model 6th November 2008 The city-state releases Africa's potential with skillful aid and trade An island at the heart of Southeast Asia and a landlocked state in the heart of Africa are an unlikely couple. Singapore has skyscrapers and strict discipline, Rwanda has its...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | SINGAPOREAFRICA Singapore's Africa Team 6th November 2008 The city-state has assembled a good squad of players in Africa President S.R. Nathan: took office in 1997, and in April 2007 became the first Singaporean President to go to Africa, with state visits to South Africa, Namibia...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 8 | CHINAAFRICA Glass Houses 7th November 2008 The U.S. are reacting to the ever-increasing Chinese presence in Africa Washington politicians are re-evaluating the significance for United States' policy in Africa in light of China's increasing engagement with the continent. On 4 June, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's Subcommittee...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 7 | JAPANAFRICA The Yokohama summit 7th November 2008 As Tokyo plays host to African and world leaders this year, politicians try to reform the bureaucracy and boost aid again Japan is launching major changes in its diplomatic and development strategy this year, coinciding with Yokohama's hosting of the fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) from...
Vol 1 (AAC) No 7 | JAPANAFRICA Slim differences among the parties 7th November 2008 How Japan's parties think about Africa, if they think about it at all Before 1998, Japanese voters would have had some difficuty in identifying any difference in Africa policy among the three main parties. The Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ, Minshutu) admits that even...