REVISITING DEPENDENCY THEORY IN THE 21ST CENTURY: IS AFRICA’S ENGAGEMENT WITH CHINA A NEW FORM OF ECONOMIC DEPENDENCE?
This study rigorously reassesses dependence theory as initially articulated by Raúl Prebisch, Andre Gunder Frank, and Samir Amin against the backdrop of Africa’s contemporary economic relationship with China,. The structural echoes of traditional dependence theory are evident as China’s bilateral commerce with Africa exceeded $295 billion in 2024, with African nations purchasing primarily manufactured commodities and exporting 89% of their exports to China in the form of raw materials. But the link between China and Africa is much more complicated than just a simple repeat of colonial-era dependence. This paper contends that an examination of trade patterns, debt structures, infrastructure financing under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and African agency within this dynamic reveals significant dependency-like characteristics, including persistent trade deficits, resource extraction, debt vulnerabilities, and restricted technology transfer. It presents a complex, contested, and evolving variant of South-South dependency that neither entirely supports nor completely contradicts classical dependency theory. The paper adds to the growing body of work on the political economy of China and Africa by putting real-world evidence into a new theoretical framework and making a set of policy suggestions for African countries to change how they work with China so that the results are fairer.
Keywords: Africa-China Relations, Belt and Road Initiative, Debt-Trap Diplomacy, Neo-colonialism, South-South Cooperation
