Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Chinese Public's Hostility to Foreign Aid

The Diplomat published on 13 September 2018 a commentary titled "Why Is the Chinese Public So Hostile Toward Development Assistance?" by Zhang Chao, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Based on Internet comments, the author suggests there is considerable hostility to Chinese foreign aid, most of which goes to Africa. The netizens complain the money should be used to end poverty in China or fix problems in the economy. The author adds that much of the criticism is based on misinformation. This situation is not significantly different than the public criticism of foreign aid in the United States, which is also based largely on misinformation.