How the African Public Views China’s Aid to Africa

5月 24, 2017

Han Donglin (韩冬临) and Huang Zhen’er (黄臻尔)

School of International Studies, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China

Abstract: As a vital part of China’s foreign relations, China’s aid to Africa has scored

great achievements. Based on data from the Afrobarometer Survey in 2010 and data from

the database of China’s aid to Africa in 2000-2010 co-created by the US Center for Global

Development and AidData, this paper dissects the macro- and micro-level determinants of

the African public’s perception of the effectiveness of aid from China through an empirical

analysis. As descriptive statistics reveal, the African public has a highly positive view of

aid from China despite country differences. According to our further analysis of a multi-

level model, aid recipients with higher levels of democracy and economic development

have a more favorable view of aid from China, while the size and sector of aid from China

are not correlated with public favorability. At the micro-level, age, gender, education,

race and media consumption are positively correlated with the public perception of aid.

In conclusion, China must refocus its future aid programs on livelihood and welfare that

directly beneﬁt local people, rather than simply increasing the amount of aid. In delivering

its commitments to Africa, China must also attach importance to public communication and

“telling the China story” in its international affairs to improve its national image and gain

more recognition by the African people.

Keywords: China’s aid to Africa, public perception, effectiveness of foreign aid, Africa

JEL Classiﬁcation Code: C300, F350, O190, O55