China Starts to Play Nice with Foreign Aid Partners

New research from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in China indicates Beijing is starting to be more open about its international aid programs. If so, this would mark a significant change from the past where the Chinese government was often criticized for its lack of transparency in how it disperses overseas development assistance.

The UNDP’s findings were published this month in a report, “Demand-Driven Data: How Partner Countries are Gathering Chinese Development Cooperation Information.” Beijing’s apparent willingness to be more open about its expanding aid agenda comes as other major donors are also increasing their development assistance, particularly in Africa, following a sharp downturn in response to the 2008 financial crisis.

The UNDP China’s Head of Policy and Partnerships in Beijing, Hannah Ryder, joins Eric and Cobus to discuss her team’s new report and the politics of Chinese foreign aid.

Recommendations

• “Demand-Driven Data: How Partner Countries are Gathering Chinese Development Cooperation Information,” United Nations Development Programme in China, June 2015
• “Full text: China’s Foreign Aid,” Information Office of the State Council, via Xinhua News Agency, July 2014

Reports

06.01.15

Demand-Driven Data: How Partner Countries are Gathering Chinese Development Cooperation Information

United Nations

As China becomes one of the major development partners and South-South cooperation (SSC) providers globally, there is increasing demand from partner countries for more information on China’s financial flows. China has been taking initiatives to...