TEXT 2
The text below contains the fragment of an interview with Ambassador Shu Zhan, a career diplomat who is the Chinese envoy to Rwanda. In this exclusive interview the envoy talks to Fred Oluoch-Ojiwah of The New Times on the wider Sino-African cooperation and how Rwanda is likely to benefit from such a framework.
Oluoch-Ojiwah: In relation to the question of Sino- African cooperation, skeptics say that China is poised to be the next imperialist power of the world after the USA ((1)) and such a prospect is what is driving the Sino- Africa cooperation agenda that will not most likely benefit Africa. Skeptics say that Africa has never benefitted from imperialism of any kind.
Shu Zhan: I do not think so ((2)). Let us look at various items that drive the global economy such as oil. The bulk of oil from Africa goes to Europe. To be precise China gets only less than 15 percent ((3)) of oil that comes from Africa with Europe taking more than 40 percent ((4)). About 33 percent ((5)) goes to USA. Look at the AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act) framework between USA and Africa. Over 90 percent ((6)) of imports from Africa to USA concerns energy and minerals. China, on the other hand, gets only about less than 20% ((7)) of African exports. However, the Chinese model to Africa has always been different ((8)). During the last 30 years, the west has been extending loans but not grants to China in return for our resources such as coal. China has been selling its resources in order to earn its loans that have been used prudently to build its economy to where it is right now. What I am trying to say is this. How do you use the money you get from such an arrangement based on what I have told you about our story with the west? What I am saying is that it all depends on the side of Africans not our side. We used that very model you are talking about to propel ourselves without any problems.”
Oluoch-Ojiwah: Some people say that technology transfer rather than direct grants is a better model of cooperation between Africa and the rest of the world. Is this the kind of model you have with Rwanda?
Shu Zhan: Yes. But the challenge we have here is that that the so-called international community does not accept Chinese technology so that that kind of technology can be transferred easily to others. There is some kind of double standards when it comes to issues of accepting technology. I will give you just one example. China produces very good traditional medicine to treat malaria. But The World Health Organization (WHO) refuses to accept it. Unless of course that a European country buys the rights to such medicines, WHO cannot grant its approval ((9)). When we try to donate such medicine to Rwanda some local health officials got skeptical and requested that we attain WHO approvals first before accepting our offer. So when I came to Rwanda I had to change the offer to something else such as mosquito nets. (Adapted from: http://www.focac.org/eng/jlydh/sjzs/t834466.htm,) (access on August , 2011.)
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