China–Ghana relations

China-Ghana relations

China	Ghana

China-Ghanaian relations refer to the

History

China and Ghana established diplomatic relations on July 5, 1960.^[1]: 345 Since then Ghana has provided substantial diplomatic support to the PRC with the PRC reciprocating with material support for Ghana's development.

In the 1960s President Nkrumah lobbied for the PRC's reinstatement in the United Nations. Nkrumah also supported the PRC during the Sino-Indian War in 1962. Nkrumah's dressing changed to the Chinese-supplied Mao suit.^[2][3]

After the coup, Nkrumah stayed in Beijing for four days and Premier Zhou Enlai treated Nkrumah with courtesy.^[4] The post-coup Ghana government closed the Chinese embassy in 1966, because in its view China continued to support Nkrumah, who had taken refuge in Guinea.^[1]: 345 Chinese government personnel left Ghana in November 1966.^[1]: 345

Ghana and China restored diplomatic relations in January 1972.^[1]: 345

In the early 1990s, China built Ghana's National Theatre as a reward for Ghana's diplomatic support following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre. After Kufuor was elected president of Ghana in 2001 the PRC gave Ghana a US$2.4 million grant to renovate the theatre.^[5]

Official visits

The two countries have enjoyed a strong relationship since 1960, with high-level official visits to China by then President Nkrumah and reciprocal visits to Ghana by Premier Zhou Enlai. In 2002 Ghana's President John Kufuor made a high-level visit to China, and in 2003 China's President Hu Jintao visited Ghana. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao visited Ghana on the second leg of his seven-nation tour of Africa in 2007.

In September 2010 Ghanaian President

Since the 2000s the volume of Chinese trade and investment in Ghana has increased greatly. From a mere $4.4 million Chinese projects registered by the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre in 2000, Chinese registered flows had increased to $1.6 billion in 2014 alone. Despite the manufacturing sector regaining its lead as the largest retainer of Chinese investments in 2014, the General Trade sector has received a largely steady flow of Chinese investments especially since 2004 and therefore the Chinese impact felt more in the trading sector. By 2015, however, Building and Construction sectors of the Ghanaian economy had emerged the largest recipient of Chinese investment flows followed by Manufacturing and General Trade. The Liaison sector which did not attract any Chinese FDI from 2000 to 2008 began to attract Chinese investments from 2009. The Services sector also emerged a significant recipient of Chinese investments from 2006.[7] Despite these economic flows and the tangible physical outcomes of Chinese companies highlighted in buildings and infrastructure, for most Ghanaian the Chinese presence is manifest in individual Chinese migrants trading in spaces that were hitherto dominated by Ghanaian merchants.^[8]

An indication of the importance China attaches to its economic relationship with Ghana in the West African region was the decision to open the fourth office of the China-Africa Development Fund in Accra. Opened in November 2011 the office in Ghana focuses on the West African region for the fund.^[9]

Economic assistance

Premier Wen Jiabao's 2007 visit resulted in the signing of six agreements and a

• A $6 billion concessionary loan from the
  China Export Import Bank which Ghana is using to extend its rail network^[11]
• A total of US$43.5 million in development assistance to Ghana between 1964 and 1970 and has written off US$25 million of debt. Recently the
  China Export and Import Bank (Exim Bank) granted US$562 million loan for the construction of the US$622 million Bui hydro-electric dam.^[5]
  ^: 7
• US$28 million interest-free loan for the construction of the 17 km Ofankor-Nsawam road completed in 2009.[5]^{: 4 & 8 [12]}
• US$99 million interest-free loan for the construction of landing sites for fishing communities and the Afife rice project.
• China has provided substantial technical support to Ghana with more than 700 Ghanaians having attended Chinese-funded training courses in education, trading, communication, energy, auditing, agriculture and fisheries operation.^{[5]: 10–11}

China-Ghanaian trade and Foreign Direct Investment

China is currently the second largest exporter to Ghana. In 2005 US$433.74 million worth of imports came into Ghana from China with Ghana exporting US$0.1 worth of exports. This reflects a sharp rise in two-way trade between the two countries from $93.13 million in 2000 to $433.74 million in 2005. Most of China's foreign direct investment in Ghana is focused on manufacturing, construction, tourism, trading and services with total investments worth US$75.8 million in 2008. Of 283 projects that Chinese nationals and SOEs have investments in 97 are in manufacturing, 59 in trading, 48 in tourism, 44 in services and 15 in construction.^[5]: 14&17 By 2014, total Chinese investments in Ghana had increased to $1.6 billion in that year alone. Whereas total Chinese FDI in Ghana for the 2000 to 2007 period was $199 million, cumulative investments for the 2008 to 2015 period was $2.2 billion.^[7]

In addition to macro trade and investment flows, Ghana has seen an increasing influx of Chinese entrepreneurial migrants. Largely independent of Chinese SOEs, they either remained in the country after working for big Chinese firms in Ghana or moved from China to Ghana just to trade. The capital might of the Chinese merchants trading in Ghana have culminated in substantial impacts on Ghanaian traders and trading spaces. Despite affording the average Ghanaian consumer low priced goods, they have displaced not only local Ghanaian traders but also goods coming from neighboring African countries.^[7] These have culminated in frictions between the Ghana Union of Traders Association and some Ghanaian traders in general on one part, and Chinese migrants on the other hand. Often drawing contrast with Indian and Lebanese merchants trading in Ghana, Ghanaian traders decry the indiscriminate trading patterns of Chinese merchants and their increasing concentration in spaces that are contested as markets.^[8]

Media

StarTimes, CGTN Africa, and Xinhua News Agency have a significant presence in Ghana's media landscape and present a pro-Chinese government viewpoint to Ghanaian audiences.^[13]

Security

In April 2007 the