ABSTRACT
The rise of China, from a stalwart of revolution in the 1950s to its emergence as a major global economic and political actor in the last decade, is one of the defining features of the twenty-first century. For the leading industrialized economies of the North, initial praise of China’s gradualist shift to a market economy has evolved into a chorus bemoaning China’s impact on trade competitiveness and growing concern as they are upstaged internationally by Beijing. These developments are most clearly visible in Africa, a continent that was languishing on the margins of international interest after the end of the Cold War.
