Sino-African Foreign Direct Investment in Land: Problems and Prospects

This chapter examines the political economy of Sino-African land acquisition with emphasis on land use for agriculture. Set within an institutions framework, it articulated a discourse on the motivation of Chinese cooperation with Africa. On China’s role in Africa, the chapter identifies pessimistic views that focus on the potential imperialist character of China in African development as well as optimistic views which posit that African states have a crucial role to play in being architects of their own development, by setting institutions in place to maximize gains from Chinese development cooperation. From an historical perspective, large-scale land acquisition involves dispossession of land capital, legal aspects of property rights - which have gendered perspectives - and information asymmetry, all of which are recognized challenges to foreign investment in Africa. The chapter amplifies the silent reality that other emerging economies such as India and Brazil can influence agrarian transformation of Africa