China’s manifesto for leadership in global development

China’s manifesto for leadership in global development

Hong Zhang, Panda Paw Dragon Claw, 8 February 2021

The publication of the White Paper on China’s International Development Cooperation in the New Era (Chinese, English) in January 2021 was an exciting development for researchers of Chinese foreign aid.

First published in 2011, then in 2014, China missed the scheduled 2017 update, making 2021 the first new update of the White Paper on foreign aid for over six years. The landmark document does not just provide the long-overdue update about China’s foreign aid (now reframed as “international development cooperation”), however. It should also be seen as a piece in China’s broader discourse-making about the role it seeks to play in the world – it is China’s manifesto for leadership in global development.

Read the blog in full here.