China’s Engagement in West Africa: The Cases of Ghana and Senegal

This brief addresses China’s growing presence in West Africa by looking at its investments in infrastructure and technology, as well as security and military cooperation. China has shown interest in expanding its activities in West Africa, an area that has previously seen lower levels of Chinese presence than southern or eastern Africa. The brief explores China’s engagement in the region by comparing its presence in Ghana and Senegal. We find that China seems to be engaged more deeply and across a wider range of sectors in Ghana than in Senegal. We link this to the fact that France traditionally maintains closer ties with its ex-colonies than Britain and that China has entertained diplomatic relations with Ghana for much longer than with Senegal.