The China in Africa Podcast

Who Controls the Battery Age? Congo, China, and the New Resource Order

The U.S., Japan, and other G7 countries are scrambling to secure critical minerals to end their reliance on Chinese-controlled supply chains. Every week, there's news of another mining deal for cobalt, lithium, and other resources essential to powering 21st century technology. But the race to control critical resources may already be over. Decades before countries in the Global West recognized the importance of these minerals and metals, China quietly built out a vast network of mining and refining operations. Nicholas Niarchos, author of the new bestselling book "The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth," joins Eric & Géraud to discuss the history of the battery metal competition and why China's early moves in this space may have given it an insurmountable lead. 📌 Topics Covered in this Episode: Why everyone sees the critical minerals supply chain differently and who's missing the full picture The making of "The Elements of Power" — one journalist's journey from Greece to Congo Artisanal mining, child labor, and the political ecosystem keeping it alive How China built its Congo mining empire over 30 years while the West looked away The Sicomines "Deal of the Century" and what it revealed about Chinese strategy Small Chinese traders, violence, and the uneasy coexistence on Congo's mining frontier Indonesia, Western Sahara and the global pattern of extractive exploitation Why the US critical minerals push may already be too little too late Show Notes: Purchase a copy of The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth: https://a.co/d/0g8xV4n8 Join the Discussion: X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social Follow CGSP in French and Spanish: French: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Spanish: www.chinalasamericas.com | @ChinaAmericas Join us on Patreon! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Why Private Bondholders Matter More Than China in Africa's Debt Debate

For more than a decade, the dominant Western narrative about Chinese lending to African countries has focused on the purported "debt trap." But the data tells a very different story. David McNair, executive director of Global Policy at ONE.org, joins Eric & Cobus to discuss a new report on African debt that challenges many popular assumptions. While African countries owe $708 billion in total external debt, only about 11.5% is owed to China. Meanwhile, private bondholders hold the largest share, often at significantly higher interest rates. More importantly, China has shifted from being a major lender to becoming a major debt collector, as loans from the Belt and Road that surged a decade ago now come due.  📌 Topics Covered in this Episode: The scale of Africa's $708 billion external debt and China's 11.5% share The $52 billion "Great Reversal" — from Chinese lending to debt collection Why private bondholders now dominate Africa's debt landscape Interest rate comparisons: Chinese loans vs. Eurobonds The rise of multilateral development banks and expanded lending headroom The failures and design flaws of the G20 Common Framework 7. Credit rating agencies, risk perception, and Africa's borrowing costs Show Notes: Development Finance Observatory: The Great Reversal ONE Data: African Debt Bloomberg: China's Retreat From Africa Lending Turns It Into Debt Collector by Matthew Hill Join the Discussion: X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @standenesque Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social Follow CGSP in French and Spanish:  French: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Spanish: www.chinalasamericas.com | @ChinaAmericas Join us on Patreon! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

How a Little-Known Chinese Company Conquered Africa's Cell Phone Market

Shenzhen-based Transsion Holdings is now a massive Chinese technology company that few people outside of Africa and certain parts of Asia have heard of. Even in China, the brand, now the world's 5th-largest mobile phone producer, remains largely unknown. Transsion gained notoriety after it entered the African market in 2006. Back then, the world's largest phone brands all but ignored African consumers, selling low-end, late-model devices designed primarily for Western and Asian consumers. The Chinese company saw an opportunity and tweaked the software on its phones to optimize photos for darker skin tones, and added a suite of features like dual SIM cards, dustproofing, and longer battery life to sell sub-$100 phones to Africa's booming youth market. That formula worked, and the company's three brands, Tecno, Infinix, and iTel, have dominated the market for more than a decade. But little is known about how Transsion achieved its success in Africa. Lu Miao, an assistant professor at Lingnan University in Hong Kong, joins Eric & Cobus to lay out the company's strategy and why it was so effective in a market that others largely ignored. Purchase the book: The Transsion Approach: Translating Chinese Mobile Technology in Africa by Lu Miao: https://a.co/d/04AKaajZ 📌 Topics covered in this episode: • Why rural-first strategy beat Silicon Valley-style scaling • How African distributors helped shape product design and marketing • The importance of dual SIM cards, long battery life, and localized features • The role of Carlcare repair centers in building long-term loyalty • The shift from feature phones to smartphones and rising competition • Growing patent lawsuits and the next phase of AI-driven competition Join the Discussion: X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander  Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social Follow CGSP in French and Spanish:  French: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Spanish: www.chinalasamericas.com | @ChinaAmericas Join us on Patreon! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

Why Africa is Now a Key Front in the U.S.-China Rivalry

Donald Trump has never thought very highly of Africa, famously referring to the continent as a place of "sh**hole countries." While there's no indication that sentiment has changed, he's recognized that African resources are essential if he wants the U.S. to decouple from Chinese dominanted critical mineral supply chains. In February, the administration unveiled an ambitious new critical minerals sourcing initiative in which African countries, in particular, play an outsized role. But the Chinese have a 20+ year head start sourcing and refining these minerals and metals, so displacing them is not going to be easy. For some perspective on this burgeoning U.S.-China rivalry, Eric & Géraud are joined by two of the top editors at the online news site Semafor. Yinka Adegoke is Semafor's Africa Editor, and Andy Browne is the outlet's Managing Editor, who will oversee Semafor's new China newsletter. 📌 Topics covered in this episode: The intensifying U.S.-China rivalry across Africa China's expanding role in Congolese cobalt and critical minerals Xi Jinping's duty-free access offer to 53 African countries Mining versus refining and why processing capacity is the real bottleneck U.S. efforts to counter China through critical minerals partnerships Trade imbalances and the limits of African industrialization Debates in Washington over corruption and China's business practices Governance in the DRC and the deeper roots of regional instability Sign up for Semaphor's Africa and China newsletters: Semafor Africa: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/africa Semafor China: https://www.semafor.com/newsletters/china  Join the Discussion: X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social Follow CGSP in French and Spanish:  French: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Spanish: www.chinalasamericas.com | @ChinaAmericas Join us on Patreon! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth

China's Expanding Military Engagement Across Africa

China is rapidly expanding its military engagement with African countries through a combination of joint exercises, growing arms sales, officer training programs, and deeper security cooperation under its Global Security Initiative. This widening footprint is generating unease in the United States, where policymakers and analysts are particularly worried about unsubstantiated claims that the PLA is seeking to build a base somewhere along Africa's Atlantic coast. Paul Nantulya, a research associate at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies in Washington, and Paa Kwesi Wolseley Prah, a post-doctoral fellow at Lingnan University in Hong Kong, join Eric & Géraud to explain why Chinese security outreach is getting so much traction across Africa. 📌 Topics covered in this episode: The scope of PLA military engagement across Africa Debates in Washington over Chinese bases and port access How the Djibouti model shapes fears of future expansion China's Global Security Initiative and what it really means Policing cooperation, surveillance, and domestic security ties The surge in Chinese arms sales, drones, and equipment China's growing security footprint in the Sahel Critical minerals and the security dimension of China-Africa relations What US lawmakers are asking about China's role in the DRC and regional stability Join the Discussion: X: @ChinaGSProject | @eric_olander | @christiangeraud Facebook: www.facebook.com/ChinaAfricaProject YouTube: www.youtube.com/@ChinaGlobalSouth Now on Bluesky! Follow CGSP at @chinagsproject.bsky.social Follow CGSP in French and Spanish:  French: www.projetafriquechine.com | @AfrikChine Spanish: www.chinalasamericas.com | @ChinaAmericas Join us on Patreon! Become a CGSP Patreon member and get all sorts of cool stuff, including our Week in Review report, an invitation to join monthly Zoom calls with Eric & Cobus, and even an awesome new CGSP Podcast mug! www.patreon.com/chinaglobalsouth