China's Africa Aid Aims to Achieve

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 BEIJING 001311 STATE PASS USTR STATE FOR EAP/CM FLATT AND THOMAS STATE FOR S/P CHOLLET AND GREEN STATE FOR EEB/TPP/BA, EAP/EP, AF/EPS STATE PASS USAID FOR ALONZO FULGHAM SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL ECON EAID EINV CH SUBJECT: China's Africa Aid Aims to Achieve Political Goals REF: BEIJING 955 This cable is Sensitive but Unclassified (SBU) and for official use only. Not for transmission outside USG channels. ¶1. (SBU) Summary. China has a distinct approach to Africa development assistance and is open to exchanging views with the United States. Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) officials provided an overview to Emboffs of their African aid priorities, but skimped on budget and project details. They acknowledged shortcomings in their evaluation of aid's effectiveness, recognized China has much to learn from the international donor community, and want to focus more on capacity building. Chinese scholars separately told Emboffs China wants to exchange aid to Africa for access to resources. They downplayed concerns that aid recipients would default on loans, arguing China was prepared to write off the debts. The scholars said China was reluctant to join multilateral aid organizations in which China does not have a strong voice but was willing to consider "gradual, small-scale" collaboration with the United States on concrete projects. End Summary. China "Open to Exchanging Views" on Development -------------- -- ¶2. (SBU) On April 27, USAID Counselor and Econoffs met MOFCOM Department of Aid to Foreign Countries International Cooperation Division Director LU Feng to discuss African development assistance. The International Cooperation Division, which was established this year and has only three staff, appears to be MOFCOM's foreign liaison office on overseas development assistance (ODA). Director Lu opened by explaining that China does not consider itself a new Africa donor because it has a half century history of assistance to African countries, noting the 1955 Bandung Conference of Asian and African leaders as key to launching South-South economic cooperation. China started to diversify its international aid after its economic opening in ¶1979. Lu said China is now very open to discussions and exchanges on international development. MOFCOM Aid: Structure and Funding -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Director Lu explained that Chinese development assistance is very centralized. Programs are managed from Beijing and MOFCOM relies heavily on the economic/commercial officers at Chinese Embassies to oversee in-country projects. The economic/commercial officer positions are staffed by MOFCOM and cover aid as well as trade and investment. Lu stressed that Chinese aid is viewed more as a commercial transaction than development assistance is viewed in the West. ¶4. (SBU) Lu explained that assistance budgets are drafted by MOFCOM and approved by the Ministry of Finance. MOFCOM typically provides 95% of funds for bilateral foreign aid, but other ministries, like the Ministry of Health, also have some separate funds for specific projects. MOFCOM usually manages bilateral assistance, while the Ministry of Finance handles contributions to multilateral and regional organizations. (Note: other Chinese agencies have told us their assistance budgets are much higher than the 5% figure Lu relayed. End Note.) ¶5. (SBU) Asia and Africa are the biggest recipients of China's assistance but Pacific, Caribbean and Latin American countries also receive assistance. In contrast to USAID's large budget and extended number of programs, Lu described China's foreign aid program as smaller and less extensive. He portrayed BEIJING 00001311 002 OF 004 the Chinese approach as more "balanced" than the U.S. system, citing China's even distribution of aid throughout Africa. However, this even distribution limits resources for each individual project. Therefore, unlike U.S. foreign aid, which is "more targeted on problems," China does not have broad initiatives that focus on particular issues. Lu characterized Chinese aid as small and more technical with very "clear" goals like the commitment to build 30 hospitals and 100 schools in Africa. After funds have been allocated, China asks recipient countries to submit project requests. China then conducts feasibility studies and determines which requests to approve. This recipient-directed process has been the norm, Lu said, and reflects "the spirit of South-South cooperation." However, China has on occasion been more proactive in determining how it would spend its aid money, as in the aforementioned case of schools and hospitals, which were not requested by African governments. China Needs Improved Assistance Evaluation -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Director Lu explained that MOFCOM only does technical evaluations of whether a particular road or building was built to specification and on schedule. MOFCOM does not usually evaluate the impact of Chinese aid projects on the recipient country's economic development because it lacks the resources. MOFCOM currently has only 70 people working in its Department of Aid to Foreign Countries. However, Lu said MOFCOM is beginning to realize the importance of such evaluations and would like to do more. Interest in Capacity Building -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Lu acknowledged that China has a lot to learn from the international aid community. In particular, he mentioned that the Chinese government is slowly moving towards providing more capacity building, as opposed to brick and mortar-type projects. He gave the example that for some development projects, they are now sending consultants instead of technicians. China Wants to Trade Infrastructure Development for Resources -------------- -------------- ¶8. (SBU) In a separate meeting, Chinese Institute of Contemporary International RELATIONS (CICIR) Institute of Asian and African Studies scholars XU Weizhong and ZENG Qiang told Emboffs China's "new way of economic engagement," which seeks to exchange infrastructure development for natural resources, was appealing to African countries, pointing out Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as examples. He said that China was not overly concerned about African countries defaulting on loans. At the 2006 Forum of China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit, China wrote off 10 billion RMB of loans and is prepared to write off more in the upcoming FOCAC Ministerial in Egypt. He said that as this is a new type of international cooperation, China does not know what the results will be and is expecting to learn from the process. Xu said China offered Africans an alternative to Western countries' assistance model, commenting that African countries have the right to choose between the two. China Reluctant to Join Some Multilateral Development Bodies -------------- -------------- ¶9. (SBU) Xu said China was reluctant to cooperate BEIJING 00001311 003 OF 004 with multilateral development organizations in which China does not have sufficient representation. In particular, he cited Chinese aversion to closer cooperation with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC),which he said would not give China a real voice. He acknowledged China has begun cooperating more with international donor organizations and can learn from Western countries about development assistance, however. Collaboration on Concrete Projects, Starting Small -------------- -------------- ¶10. (SBU) Xu emphasized the need for the United States and international donors to give China concrete proposals for collaboration. He suggested China and the United States start by collaborating on small projects and working gradually towards larger projects. He explained that this is the Chinese way. Categories of Foreign Aid -------------- ¶11. (SBU) In the meeting with MOFCOM, Director Lu outlined nine categories of Chinese foreign aid -- a. Infrastructure projects: The Chinese government completes a whole project, from funding to design to construction, in a recipient country. b. Provision of Goods: China will grant, or enable the recipient country to acquire, materials necessary for projects or production. For example, China will provide tractors or construction materials to a country that has the capability to complete a particular construction project on its own. c. Technical Cooperation: China will send technical experts, e.g., agronomists, to countries in need. At the 2006 meeting in Beijing of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC),China committed to setting up 10 demonstration farms throughout Africa. d. Emergency Aid: China provides emergency aid in the case of a disaster. For example, China gave emergency aid to Mali and to the United States after Hurricane Katrina. e. Human resources development program: China provides technical and managerial training for up to 10,000 people yearly (approximately 3000 from Africa),mainly in China. Lu added that China was committed to increase training to support African efforts to reach the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) goals. f. Preferential loans: These loans are provided by banks but the interest rates are subsidized by the Chinese government. Of China's commitment to provide RMB 5 billion in soft loans to Africa, 2 billion is through MOFCOM-managed preferential loans and 3 billion is through EXIM Bank-type concessional loans. g. Chinese medical assistance: China sends medical teams that provide services, medicine and equipment. h. Youth Volunteers: Chinese Youth League sends volunteers to developing countries to provide technical assistance, teach Chinese, teach martial arts, etc. This program exists in Africa but the number of volunteers is very limited. i. Cash Aid: In limited cases, China provides cash aid to recipient countries, usually in cases of emergencies. Presentation of USG development priorities BEIJING 00001311 004 OF 004 -------------- ¶12. (SBU) Embassy Beijing USAID Counselor presented USG development priorities and briefed on current USAID projects in Africa. She highlighted the overall increase in assistance to Africa over the last decade, noting that an increasing number of U.S. development resources come from the private sector, including a U.S. oil project in Angola. In response, Lu explained that China had developed a fund for projects in Angola in exchange for oil which is managed by MOFCOM's West Africa Division and which is supported by the China Development Bank (CDB) and Export-Import Bank (EXIM). USAID Counselor focused on a few development areas where the Chinese government might be particularly interested in exchanging ideas or working together, such as non- emergency food aid, child survival, malaria initiatives, and trade and investment facilitation - - all areas in which China has previously offered assistance in Africa. As an example of how to combine efforts, she mentioned the existing collaboration between USAID and China's State Forestry Administration, which are working together on a project in Congo as part of the U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue. Comment -------------- ¶13. (SBU) Chinese officials have long been wary of discussions with the international ODA donor community, but recently have become more open to exchanging experiences and collaborating on targeted projects on an equal footing. The formation of a foreign liaison division within MOFCOM's Department for Aid to Foreign Countries is a manifestation of this trend, which was also reported reftel. As we engage China on development assistance, we should keep in mind China's preference for incremental changes to policy and the POLITICAL goals of Chinese aid. End comment. PICCUTA YY