By Nicholas Kuzovamunhu- China’s reorganization, reorientation and restructuring of its new policy amid covid-19 has been a concern over global politics.
Its new development has been done in a bid to set pace over how other states, can resuscitate their economies during the COVID-19 which has become a global pandemic.
There are high prospects of clashes between China and the West, as African states have shifted attention in relation to trade issues and they are slowly paying little or no attention to Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) in favor of China, for example the European Union –African Caribbean Pacific agreement has been regarded as paternalism, since the European Union dictates the terms and pace of negotiation.
European Union-African Caribbean Pacific Agreement was introduced to resolve issues of non-reciprocity and allowing developing countries to pay no duty on exports to European Union giving them total market access to their markets. The policy targets on how China will promote trade and investment with various countries including African states such as Zimbabwe.
Simultaneously with Chinese policies, Zimbabwe has also launched its National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) which has set targets over trade as an important tool, for development in order to achieve vision 2030 that of upper middle economy.
China and Zimbabwe have signed various Economic Partnership Agreements and Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT) to boost trade in order to maximize development. A point to note is that whether African states such as Zimbabwe have ultimately benefitted from such relations.
Chinese new policy will likely to create controversy with West under the guise of “Chinese Diplomacy”. There is an uproar between major powers over the responsibility to shape and determine global politics.
The new policy of China will likely to cause global disorder as it pledges to high quality development by actively participating in the reform of global economic governance.
The recent sentiments made by President Xi Jinping, has been a cause of global concern, when he said:
“China must actively cooperate all countries, regions and enterprises, including with those in the United States”, this has imperatively proved Chinese foreign policy aims at making itself a global hegemony, which will therefore create problem with the West specifically the US as it has been the global hegemony under the unipolar system marked by the end of Cold War.
China has sought to engage with all states despite the style of governance as it reiterates that “we do not care whether the cat is black or white, as long as it catches the mice”. China turns a blind eye on issues of human rights or system of governance.
This has made it a favorable trading partner of all almost all African states, under its ‘non-interference’ policy. But this relationship has created contentions within the development literature.
China seeks to advance its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and this has created pandemonium as it has been termed the “re-colonization of Africa” under Chinese new diplomacy and points to note is the creation of a military base in Djibouti.
One of the key challenges with Chinese trade relationship with Africa, is that they have created a dependent approach to relations and this creates a suzerain (master-servant) relationship.
Therefore, from a developmental theorist perspective, it is a clear point to note that the development of China is closely associated with the development of Africa in a process of subordinate development or underdevelopment of the latter.
From a realistic perspective, I can therefore assert that at the very core of this new policy, are power relations, since power is the currency to global politics. It is an open idea that this 14th development plan clearly shows that for now to China national security matters.
The fifth plenum of this new development plan calls for international collaboration through high level-up. Further the Chinese new policy will not likely benefit Africa or even the global world rather negatively implicate the economies of several states.
This is so, because realists claim that calls by China that its trade relations are guided by mutual development and integration are misguiding, rather it is the opposite characterized by exploitation and underdevelopment to the benefit of it.
Nicholas Kuzovamunhu is an Msc in International Trade and Diplomacy student at the University of Zimbabwe.