Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences posted on 15 November 2021 a commentary titled "China in Africa: Exporting Authoritarianism?" by Paul Massari in an interview with Bulelani Jili, PhD candidate.
Jili explores what motivates African countries to engage with China, particularly in the area of information and communication technology. He notes that the tendency to see China as exporting authoritarianism both portrays African nations as passive and fails to identify the reasons that both democratic and repressive regimes have for doing business with China. Jili looks at the balance between motivations that are tied up with China's domestic supply needs and those that respond to local conditions in Africa.
