Printer-friendly versionSend by emailPDF version

In this week's edition of the Emerging Powers News Round-Up, read a comprehensive list of news stories and opinion pieces related to China, India and other emerging powers...

1. General

Asia starts 2012 with record W.African oil imports
Asia is importing record volumes of West African oil this year, rebuilding stocks after relatively low shipments in December, Reuters calculations based on industry and shipping data show.
Read More

2. China in Africa

New AU headquarters indicative of close China-Africa partnership: PM Meles
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said that the new African Union headquarters is a sign of close cooperation between China and Africa. The premier made the remark here on Wednesday January 11, 2012 while visiting the new AU headquarters, which was built by the China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC). The construction and refurbishment, fully financed by the Chinese government, consumed close to 200 million USD.
Read More

African countries learning from China's SEZs
A delegation of African government officials, experts and entrepreneurs gathered in Shenzhen on Monday for a China-Africa poverty reduction and development seminar, organized by the International Poverty Reduction Center in China, United Nations Development Program and China Center for Special Economic Zones Research of Shenzhen University.
Read More

China keen to cooperate with West in Africa
China is open to trilateral cooperation with the West and the international community in Africa, based on Africa's consent, to enhance local development, a senior Chinese diplomat said on Wednesday. Lu Shaye, director-general of the Department of African Affairs of the Foreign Ministry, said Western countries have proposed trilateral cooperation with China in Africa many times, and China is willing to cooperate with the international community to enhance Africa's development.
Read More

China lends Africa more than World Bank
In the past decade, the Export-Import Bank of China has extended US$12.5 billion more in loans to the countries of sub-Saharan Africa than the World Bank, according to Fitch Ratings.
Read More

Chinese deal could herald new era for African cotton
A recent Chinese-African cotton agreement could usher in a new era for the African cotton industry – but not in the short-term, say industry experts. Under the agreement, signed in December with four key cotton-producing African countries - Benin, Mali, Chad and Burkina Faso (known as the C4) – China stated it would provide machinery, expertise and materials in a bid to increase and improve the quality of local production.
Read More

Chinese Delegation Expected to Deepen Bilateral Cooperation
With a view of strengthening Rwando-Chinese cooperation, a delegation of Chinese high government officials and businesspeople will soon visit the country for mutual collaboration and to explore investment opportunities.
Read More

Chinese FM Holds Talks with Nigerien Minister on Bilateral Ties
Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Wednesday held talks with Bazoum Mohamed, Niger's minister of state in charge of foreign affairs, cooperation, African integration and overseas Nigeriens, on relations between their two countries.
Read More

Chinese TV launches English-language Africa broadcast
China Central Television (CCTV) on Wednesday started broadcasting English-language African news produced at a centre in Kenya’s capital. It is the first time state-run CCTV News has set up a production centre outside of China and about 100 people are employed there.
Read More

3. India in Africa

India planning US$100m credit to Zim
India is planning to provide a soft credit of US$100 million to Zimbabwe for development of its health sector and to help the country in skill development. “A team from India would be visiting Harare next week to discuss the proposal for Line-of-Credit (LoC) of US$100 million for strengthening of health infrastructure,” Commerce, Industry and Textiles Minister, Anand Sharma, who is on a two-day visit to Harare, said. The issue of credit was discussed during his meeting with Finance Minister, Tendai Biti on Tuesday.
Read More

India to assist Zimbabwe in reviving its textile sector
Shri Anand Sharma, Commerce, Industries and Textiles Minister announced that the National Institute of Design (NID) India is undertaking a project for training and exposure to craftswomen of rural Africa to empower them through design intervention in basketry making, as part of the India-Africa Forum Summit Action Plan. The announcement came during his meeting with Prof. Welshman Ncube, Ministry of Industry & Commerce of Zimbabwe at Harare.
Read More

India loans $100 million to Mali for power project
India has extended a $100-million loan to Mali for a power project, while Bamako promised to support the Asian giant's bid for a permanent UN Security Council seat, a statement said. The joint statement, received by AFP Friday, was issued after a visit to India by Malian President Amadou Toumani Toure on January 11-12.
Read More

Anand Sharma Leads Indian Delegation at ANC Centenary Meets with His Counterpart Rob Davies
Shri Anand Sharma, Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles, is heading the Indian delegation to the Centenary celebrations of the African National Congress (ANC) in the South African city of Mangaung (Bloemfontein) called on Mr. Jacob Zuma, President of the Republic of South Africa and President of the ANC.
Read More

India seeks trade pact with S Africa
India and the South African Customs Union (Sacu) are expected to firm up the contours of a preferential trade agreement (PTA) over the next couple of months. New Delhi has already sent a list of 1,050 items on which it has sought lower customs duty, while Sacu - comprising South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and Swaziland - wants India to cut tariffs on 748 items.
Read More

Coal India set to explore coal in South Africa
Inadequate supply of coal to power stations in India could well be a thing of the past with Coal India setting up a joint venture with the Limpopo government in South Africa to acquire coal mines in the province. Coal India accounts for more than 80% of the domestic coal production in India and recently revised its production target downwards.
Read More

India for Security Council representation from Africa
Strongly pitching for the expansion of permanent membership of the U.N. Security Council, India has said the powerful body should have representation from developing countries, including Africa.
Read More

4. In Other Emerging Powers News

Companies from Brazil and Cape Verde plan to produce shrimp on the archipelago
A partnership between companies from the Brazilian state from Ceará and from Cape Verde has been set up with the aim of farming shrimp on the archipelago, according to Brazilian newspaper Diário do Nordeste.
Read More

Malawi, Brazil's Vale ink $1 bln rail line deal
Malawi said on Wednesday it has signed a $1 billion deal with Brazil's Vale for the construction and rehabilitation of a rail line that will transport 18 million tonnes of coal from Mozambique. "Vale will invest about $1 billion in Malawi over a period of three years for construction and rehabilitation of the railway line and it is expected to employ 4,500 workers of which 70 percent will be Malawians," Minister of Transport Sidick Mia told Reuters.
Read More

5. Blogs, Opinions, Presentations and Publications

Brazil's rise as a major world player
Today’s new world order is mostly led by non-western giants, such as China, India and Brazil. Brazil rose as a major player with global influence through hard work at home. As a result, it managed to acquire the authority to engage in decision-making processes on the world agenda, whether political, economic, commercial, environmental, social or cultural in nature. Thus, its voice is being increasingly heard and respected internationally and its favourable attributes for promoting development and strengthening cooperation among nations are duly used.
Read More

South Africa, the Indian Ocean and the IBSA-BRICS equation: Reflections on Geopolitical and Strategi
South Africa's entry into the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) forum in 2011 alongside its membership in the trilateral forum of India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) raises a number of issues in the nature of trends analysis. These have to do with the relationships among the developing countries of the so-called global South, overlapping into the realm of emerging powers. These can be considered semi-developed countries exhibiting robust rates of growth, development, rising living standards and growing regional geopolitical influence in an increasingly multipolar global environment.
Read More

On SA's membership of the BRICS
On a visit to the ancient central Chinese city of Xian in 2006, my Chinese government interlocutor told me this story about the Chinese psyche. He said that throughout their lives, the Chinese have to choose between being the head of a duck (part dwarfism), or becoming a tail of a dragon (part giantism). A similar challenge has dogged the psyche of South Africa's diplomacy since the dawn of our democracy in 1994: does SA settle to be a head of the African duck (a giant amongst dwarfs)? Or does SA aspire to be a tail of the world's mighty dragons like China, Russia, Brazil and India (a dwarf amongst emerging giants)?
Read More

China’s role in North-South Sudan relations
The governments of South Sudan and Sudan have some unresolved issues left over from divorce that was finalised in July. From border demarcation to oil resources, one would expect South Sudan and Sudan to be at each others throats by now, but that hasn’t been the case at all. Faced with sudden loss of its hard currency earner – oil – Sudan crafted a budget that was filled with glaring shortfalls. To make up for the loss of its share of oil – about 75% worth – Sudan imposed exorbitant transit fees that would allow it to recoup upward of $2 billion annually.
Read More

Chinese Troops In Seychelles – Analysis
The republic of Seychelles has come in news with the stationing of the Chinese troops in Mahe. The archipelago nation is located at a strategic location as it lies in the path of major shipping lines. This has raised a pertinent question as to what has provoked China to station troops in Seychelles. Is piracy the only reason for this or there are other ulterior motives behind the stationing of the troops?
Read More