China’s changing relationship with Africa

China’s rapid and pervasive entry into Africa has been one of the continent’s defining trends in the past decade and a half.

Premier Li Keqiang’s Africa tour in May took in Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria and Angola, and was used to reiterate China’s sizeable investment commitments without political strings to the continent. Li committed an additional $10 billion to finance Chinese projects in Africa as well as extending $2 billion to the China-Africa Development Fund CADFund, a now $5 billion sovereign wealth fund that invests in the equity of Sino-African joint venture companies.

Li also predicted that China-Africa trade would reach $400 billion by 2020,...