Introduction. China-Africa Relations: Interdisciplinary Question and Theoretical Perspectives

Abstract

The study of China-Africa relations has been approached from a wide array of disciplines. Three theoretical perspectives are now common in the literature: Realism, Liberalism and Social Constructivism. Realism sees China’s engagement in Africa as driven by its national interest centred on economic and geo-strategic interests, liberalism views the engagement in Africa as a consequence of globalization rooted in China’s domestic modernization programme that began in the late 1970s. Social constructivism draws inspiration from historical interaction between China and Africa, viewing the engagement as shaped by identities and shared interests over time. Whereas these perspectives have been useful in understanding China’s diverse engagement in Africa, they have paid a lot of attention on Chinese agency – centering on how all-powerful China subjugates weak African states. The question of how Africa is represented in the engagement was the main subject matter that was widely discussed at the conference and some of the papers are published in this Special Issue. This introductory article surveys these theoretical perspectives with a view of providing a comprehensive understanding of China-Africa relations.