The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast

The Crane: Episode #7 - Africa Says ‘NO’ to Cold War 2.00

African leaders have resoundingly rejected for our continent to be turned into a battleground for a new, US-led Cold War which, while targeting Russia and China directly, is having huge political and economic impacts in the Global South.
We explore how the shortcomings of the UN system and lack of equitable representation in other major multilateral organizations have undermined African progress and development.
Fun facts include the time the Global North opposed Africa’s UN development agenda because of a single phrase. And current plans to spend US$1.5 billion on global information warfare against China – while China spends to build essential infrastructure in Africa through the BRI.
For more on some of the topics discussed check out:
The United States Is Waging a New Cold War: A Socialist Perspective by Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, 13 September 2022.
Looking Over the Horizon at Nonalignment and Peace by Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, 27 September 2022.
Making Multilateralism Work for Africa by Development Reimagined, September 2022.
Australia ‘must ready Solomon Islands invasion’ to stop China security deal by The Courier-Mail, March 2022
 
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 #TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng 

The Crane: Episode #6 - What Is the Mid-Autumn Festival?

In this episode, we do a short cultural snippet about the Chinese Mid-Autumn festival. We look into the origins and customs of the Chinese harvest holiday that comes with orange flowers, poetry, matchmaking, and ancient surfers!
 
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 #TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng 

The Crane: Episode #5 - Country Focus: China & DRC - Mining, Local Elites, & US Scramble for Strategic Minerals

In this episode, we discuss China’s relationship with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with Congolese researcher and human rights activist Kambale Musavuli. 
Kambale takes us through everything from the responsibility of local elites in delivering projects, to the US efforts to cut China off from vital strategic minerals (involving both Hilary Clinton and Antony Blinken), and dispelling myths about the ‘controversial’ Chinese-owned Tenke Fungurume cobalt mine.
For more, check out these resources:
China cancels Democratic Republic of Congo loans as it joins belt and road, SCMP, January 2021, https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3116837/china-cancels-democratic-republic-congo-loans-it-joins-belt 
Why China is making a big play for Congolese cobalt – and other critical minerals, SCMP, August 2021, https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3145065/why-china-making-big-play-congolese-cobalt-and-other-critical 
A Closer Look at China in Africa, Codepink, Feburary 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpAcAEl48PA&t=1737s
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 
 #TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng
 

The Crane: Episode #4 - China Deepens Africa Trade Ties While US Plays Geopolitics

The Biden administration just launched the new U.S. Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa, which is heavily focused on geopolitical competition with Russia & China and less on engagement with African aspirations and interests.
 
In contrast, China has just announced that it is removing almost all trade tariffs on exports from 16 of the world’s least developed countries, many of which are African.   
 
We discuss Africa-China trade politics in the light of this new US policy as well as what the US says and how some African leaders are responding to it. 
 
For more, check out these resources:
U.S. Strategy Toward Sub-Saharan Africa, US State Department, August 2022, https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/U.S.-Strategy-Toward-Sub-Saharan-Africa-FINAL.pdf
Ralph Jennings, “China Cuts Tariffs”, SCMP, 8 August 2022, https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3188149/china-cuts-tariffs-cosies-16-worlds-poorest-nations-us. 
Anna Flack, “China - Africa Trade Hits Record Highs in 2021”, Statista, 1 August 2022, https://www.statista.com/chart/27880/trade-between-china-and-africa/ 
 
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
 
You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
 
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
 
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 
 #TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng

The Crane: Episode #3 - China and “Debt Trap” Diplomacy in Africa: Facts & Data

Allegations and accusations that China is trapping Africa into unsustainable debt agreements have dominated the conversation around Africa-China relations in Western media, but what does the data tell us? 
We look at the international implications of this claim, what debt trap diplomacy is, and who owns most of Africa's external debts. Featuring Sri Lanka, the African Development Bank, and the “secret” lenders they don’t tell us about.     
For more, check out these studies:
Brautigam, Deborah, and Meg Rithmire. "The Chinese ‘debt trap is a myth." The Atlantic, 6 February 2021. https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2021/02/china-debt-trap-diplomacy/617953/.  
Jones, Lee, and Shahar Hameiri. "Debunking the myth of ‘debt-trap diplomacy’." Chatham House 19 (August 2020). https://www.chathamhouse.org/2020/08/debunking-myth-debt-trap-diplomacy.
Lippolis, Nicolas, and Harry Verhoeven. "Politics by Default: China and the Global Governance of African Debt." Survival 64, no. 3 (2022): 153-178. 
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
🎧You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 
#TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng 

The Crane: Episode #2 - What Role Did China Play In Africa Liberation?

What role did China play in Africa’s liberation? We look into it, from early voyages by Admiral Zheng He compared to European “explorers” to the 1967 Chinese-support building of the TAZARA railway in Zambia & Tanzania against Apartheid.
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
🎧You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 
#TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng

The Crane: Episode #1 - Is China A ”Neo-Colonial” Force Grabbing Land In Africa?

Does China act as a “neo-colonial” force on the continent, grabbing land and subordinating the needs of Africans? 
We’ll discuss this, how the Ukraine conflict affects food security, Prof. Deborah Brautigam's amazing work on this issue, & much more.
The Crane: An Africa-China Podcast is a bi-monthly podcast giving you a fresh look at the news, events, and debates around China-Africa relations from the perspective of two young(ish) Africans.
🎧 You can listen to all episodes of The Crane for free anywhere you get podcasts.
Brought to you by the Dongsheng Collective. Follow us @DongshengNews on Twitter, Instagram, Telegram & TikTock. Or visit www.dongshengnews.org.
The bumper music uses the song "Live It" by Ketsa, under a single track perpetual license that gives the licensee the perpetual right to use the track in commercial projects worldwide.
 
#TheCranePodcast #ChinaAfrica #Dongsheng

The Crane: Epsiode #0 (Show Trailer)

Welcome to "The Crane: Africa-China Podcast", a bimonthly podcast about Africa and China relations.