The Impact of China on Sub-Saharan Africa’s Ability to Work t ...
Abstract
Africa has been supplying resources for industrialising and industrialised nations for at least five centuries. As industrialisation and development accelerated in China, its need for resources soon exceeded internal supplies. China has become a major purchaser of resources from sub-Saharan Africa especially in the last decade. When China joined the competition for African products the balance of foreign interests in the region changed. This paper explores the impact of China on sub-Saharan Africa, and assesses the sustainability implications of Chinese involvement in this region using the economic concept, ‘the triple bottom line’ (people, profit, planet).