It seems that every week we hear of further Chinese investments in the African economies. Although there are mixed opinions on how growth is being achieved, and at what “expense”, there is no doubt that the money is coming rolling in. South Africa’s Standard Bank, Africa’s largest bank, forecasts in their outlook for the next five years, that investment from China into Africa is likely to hit US$50 billion by 2015, up 70% from 2009.
The BBC reported at the beginning of 2011 that it will be a bumper year for Chinese investment and that Ethiopia is a good example. Addis Ababa, capital of the country which is home to an estimated 88 million people, is awash with cranes and half-constructed buildings, mostly financed by the Chinese.