African leaders and elites are adept at crafting manifestos, declarations, and national visions.

Xi’s statecraft — rooted in mutual respect.

Stability depends on cooperation, inclusive economic development, and balanced and credible security guarantees for all states.

China’s zero-tariff regime represents a defining upgrade in its Africa engagement: from infrastructure financing to trade-led growth.

At the core of China’s development is state capacity — the ability of state institutions to formulate, coordinate, and enforce policy reliably.

Its goal is to anchor African producers more firmly within global supply chains and enable them to capture more value through access to China’s vast consumer market.

Sovereignty norms as the core institutional benchmark

From an African perspective, it is neither reasonable to blindly glorify China’s development model nor follow Western biased opinions to reject China arbitrarily.