In January, leaders from China and Africa declared 2026 the Year of Humanitarian Exchanges, which aims to strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation between the parties. Since 1991, there has been a tradition whereby the Chinese foreign minister's first visit of the year is to an African country, underscoring the importance of the continent's states to China. In recent years, their economic and strategic partnership has been expanding and has the potential to influence the world.
Finam explains why relations between China and Africa are important and what the parties hope to gain from cooperation.
Industrialization of Africa
In their relations with China, African countries are seeking to move from receiving aid for infrastructure development to long-term strategic partnerships. Currently, negotiations between China and Africa are dominated by topics such as the industrialization of the African region and the creation of added value for goods from African countries.
African governments are opposed to the old model of interaction, in which they export raw materials and import industrial goods. They want to develop their own industries and are seeking to boost local production, assembly, technology transfer, and integration into international supply chains.
In addition, African countries have already begun to actively develop electric transport. For example, Ethiopia intends to produce 500,000 electric vehicles by 2030 after banning the import of new fuel-powered cars. Kenya already produces its own electric vehicles. The only components for electric vehicles that Africans import from China are batteries. However, they plan to establish full-cycle production in the next few years.
More and more African countries are assembling electric buses, motorcycles, and public transport vehicles. They are pursuing policies aimed at increasing technology transfer from foreign (including Chinese) partners in order to stimulate local production, increase the added value of key minerals, and create new supply chains. In all aspects of industrialization, Africans are counting on the support of their Chinese partners and their investments.
Reducing the debt burden of African countries
Africa's debt burden consists of approximately 43% private debt, 34% multilateral debt, and 23% bilateral debt. China is the region's largest bilateral creditor. In cooperation with China, African countries are seeking concessional financing with lower interest rates and avoiding the costly loans that led to the region's debt crisis in the 1990s. Policymakers recognize that poorly managed debt can undermine the sovereignty and stability of African states.
According to an analysis published by ONE Data, China's role as the leading lender to developing countries has changed over the past decade: the number of new loans to poor countries has fallen sharply, while debt repayments continue to rise. Many poor African countries are now transferring more funds to China to repay old debts than they are receiving in new financial injections from China. Experts attribute this problem to a sharp increase in net financing from multilateral organizations, which have become the main source of cash injections for Africa's development in recent years.
China has already promised to restructure or cancel part of the bilateral debt of African countries and has expressed interest in more flexible instruments such as green bonds and blended finance.
Minerals and a fast-growing market for China
Relations between Africa and China are often perceived as one-sided, but in reality, it is a complex partnership in which China also relies heavily on Africa. African countries supply minerals necessary for the development of green energy, the production of electric vehicles, and high-tech products in China. China is particularly dependent on bauxite from Guinea, which accounted for 99.26 million tons of the 141.6 million tons of bauxite imported by China in 2024.
In percentage terms, from 2016 to 2024, bauxite imports from Africa to China amounted to an impressive 731%. The Democratic Republic of Congo dominates China's cobalt imports, providing more than 70% of the world's supply needed for the production of batteries and electronics. At the same time, at least 13 African countries have banned the export of critical minerals in their raw form to push China and other countries to create value added on the continent. The African Union has helped establish the African Critical Minerals Association to strengthen collective bargaining power and force China and other countries to make concessions necessary for the region's further development.
In addition, China is attracted by Africa's rapidly growing market and positive demographics. Africa's young population, which is projected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050, is creating one of the world's largest emerging consumer markets, where China can import its goods and expand its own production in Africa.
The Global South alliance and security issues
Africa is playing an increasingly important role on the international stage as the fastest-growing region. This is also evidenced by its status as a permanent member of the G20.
China often positions its cooperation with African countries as part of the Global South's common agenda, focused on mutual benefit and respect for national priorities. The combined population of China and Africa has reached 2.8 billion people. This is what makes their bilateral cooperation influential for the whole world. For example, cooperation between Africa and China in the field of security is expanding, but African countries are approaching it with caution in order to maintain friendly relations not only with China but also with Western countries. For example, African countries are turning to China for patrol vessels, surveillance systems, and technical training to secure vulnerable waterways such as the Gulf of Guinea, the Red Sea, and the Mozambique Channel. However, this does not prevent them from entering into maritime security agreements with other foreign partners.
