U.S. vs China, as played out in Africa

As President Obama gets ready to make his first trip to Ghana this July, one cannot help but wonder how he will be received. Of course quite warmly, I imagine, especially in light of his Kenyan roots, but it will be quite curious to see how - if at all - China's growing influence on the continent has shifted African perceptions of American assistance. Bear in mind that this trip will be Obama's first to sub-Saharan Africa (and during his 8 years as President, Bush II visited the continent only twice); Chinese President Hu has visited 15 sub-Saharan states since 2004. And I needn't remind you of the litany of recent Chinese investments in the continent, dubious though some of them may be.

The question of U.S. versus Chinese influence in Africa is brought home quite nicely by Ken Maguire. In his article today, Maguire expounds on this battle of authorities, if you will, ultimately concluding that the U.S.-China relationship in Africa can be cooperative. There is no denying that it can't; the question, I feel is much more one of degrees. Obama's upcoming trip may indeed prove quite central in shedding light on this issue, along with countless others.

More on international land purchases (and what to do about them)

Further to last week's post on international land purchases in developing countries (mainly in Africa, really), an interesting piece in today's VoxEU suggests that such purchases could be good news "if the objectives of the land purchasers are reconciled with the investment needs of developing countries." Quite an obvious statement, really, but how does one go about ensuring that this is the case?

According to authors Denis Drechsler and David Hallam:

Apart from improving the conditions of land deals, several looser contractual arrangements should also be considered. In fact, the purchase and direct use of land resources is only one strategic response to the food security problems of countries with limited land and water. A variety of other mechanisms can offer just as much – or even higher – security of supply, such as contract farming and out-grower schemes, bilateral agreements including counter-trade, and improvement of international food market information systems.

Investment could be in much-needed infrastructure and institutions that currently constrain agriculture in developing countries, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. This, together with efforts to improve the efficiency and reliability of world markets as sources of food could raise food security for all concerned through an expansion of production and trade possibilities.

What Drechsler and Hallam are effectively proposing is a "binding code of conduct" which would govern land purchases, as well as a thorough search for alternatives, as noted above. What neither they nor anyone else have been able to tease out, however, is what a regulatory framework will look like, should there be one. Will each recipient state have the authority to establish its own guidelines, or will they be enforced through an agency like the UN FAO, for instance?

While many questions abound, it's heartening to see that the debate on land purchases and food security is finally being brought to the forefront, where it arguably should have been several years ago.