Chinese Engagement in Nigeria's Oil and Mining: Positive Transformation?

Abstract

China’s expansion of its economic prowess to the African continent has gained prominence in the literature on contemporary African development. Its relations with Africa are mostly ‘stereotyped’ as an energy quest to sustain its own economic growth, leading to anti-Chinese resistance narratives in Africa. Against this background, the observed presence of China in Nigeria, more specifically, warrants attention, as the strategic relationship has expanded significantly to emerge as a powerful, yet questionable, South-South alliance. The paper therefore documents the economic activities of China in Nigeria through the channels of trade, outward foreign direct investment and aid, to frame our understanding of the content of those ties. As China’s engagement with Nigeria is skewed towards the extractive industry, the paper focuses solely on the oil and mining sectors. It traces the transforming developments and also addresses the concerns for Nigeria, relating to economic, environmental and social, following China’s commercial presence in those sectors. From the economic dimensions of this contextual engagement, we set out a research agenda that focuses on the effectiveness of the China’s commercial activities for the Nigerian oil and mining sectors.

Keywords: China; Nigeria; oil and mining; trade; investment; aid.

JEL Classification: F02; F14