Chinese Volunteering in Africa

Annali di Ca' Foscari published in March 2016 a study titled "Chinese Volunteering in Africa: Drivers, Issues and Future Prospects" by Antonella Ceccagno and Sofia Graziani, University of Bologna.

To the best of my knowledge, this is the first and only in-depth study in English of China's small youth volunteer program in Africa. It is known by various names, including the China Youth Volunteers Overseas Service Program. Since 2005, it has dispatched 408 volunteers to 16 countries in Africa and encountered some internal criticism as to its effectiveness. By comparison, the U.S. Peace Corps has since 1961 assigned more than 100,000 volunteers to nearly every country in Africa and currently has about 3,000 volunteers serving in 29 African countries.

The study also examines the practice and policy of China's international aid voluntary service and frames the issues surrounding new approaches and future prospects for voluntary service in Africa within the context of China's soft power strategies. This is a fascinating study on a China-Africa subject that has received very little attention.

We briefly described this volunteer program in our China and Africa: A Century of Engagement (2012) on page 154.

Article downplays differences between development in China and Africa

For those of you interested in China-Africa relations, I call to your attention an interesting piece from the Chinese perspective by Li Anshan, professor at the Institute of Afro-Asian Studies, School of International Studies, Peking University. Titled "Chinese Experiences in Development: Implications for Africa," it appeared on June 18, 2009, in Pambazuka News, an excellent source for information about Africa. Professor Li (pictured at right) argues:

China's development is simply a process of learning, learning from anybody who can provide a better way for development, and the process is still going on. To apply others' experiences and lessons, that is, their success and failure, to your own conditions, is the only applicable lesson that China can offer.

He explains the role of the Communist Party of China in this process and emphasizes the importance of agriculture for both China and Africa. He also underscores China's belief in pursuing self-reliance and implies Africa should do the same. My major criticism of his analysis is that he does not draw enough parallels and differences between development in China and African countries.