China

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MAKING EXTRACTIVE INVESTMENTS WORK FOR AFRICA’S DEVELOPMENT: WHAT ROLE FOR QATAR IN SHAPING THE DEBATE ON NATURAL RESOURCE GOVERNANCE?

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Fantu Cheru*

ABSTRACT

At present, emerging economies such as China, are the major importers as well as investors in Africa’s extractive sector. Indeed, they maintain a “stranglehold” on the continent regarding finance for development. Their success in gaining access to the resources of Africa is linked to an effective strategy that combines trade inducements, increased investment flows, aid for infrastructure and construction and technology transfers. With the recent dramatic decline in the price of commodities, and China’s re-balancing with greater emphasis on consumption-driven growth model, growth prospects in commodity-dependent Africa has dampened. Qatar, with its abundant hydrocarbon reserves and US$10 billion foreign exchange reserves, deploys its “soft power” to enable African countries develop their extractive sector fully, industrialize and end China’s financial stranglehold on the continent. Qatar can help develop Africa’s mineral processing industries through public private partnerships and experience. This is because of Qatar’s track record as a sound manager of natural resources. This type of partnership will assist African countries to get more out of their natural resources through valueaddition, and further deepen domestic technological capacity and job creation.

Key words: Qatar, China, Africa, minerals, oil, extractive, development

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jsdlp.v8i1.8

* Professor and Senior Researcher, African Studies Center, Leiden University, the Netherlands Associate Senior Fellow, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

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CHINA’S INFLUENCE IN AFRICA: CURRENT ROLES AND FUTURE PROSPECTS IN RESOURCE EXTRACTION

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Liu Haifang*

ABSTRACT

In the second half of 2014, some African countries felt the heavy strike of falling prices of mineral resources on the world market. The international media raised vocalex positions on the negative impact that China’s slow down might bring to the African economy. One headline read: “Chinese investment in Africa has fallen 40 per cent this year – but it’s not all bad news”.1 More recently, the exasperation intensified to “China’s slowdown blights African economies”,2 and managed to shadow the China-African Summit held in December 2015 in Johannesburg. Similarly, on the recent Africa Mining Indaba, the annual biggest African event for the mining sector, the renewed concern was stated as “Gloom hangs over African mining as China growth slows”.3 There is no doubt that China’s presence has had positive effects on Africa’s growth over the past decade. Nonetheless, only a narrow perspective would view Africa’s weak performance solely through the Chinese prism. This article addresses the afore-mentioned concerns regarding the impacts that China has in Africa. A historical approach is applied to reconstruct the economic cooperation since the mid-1990s. This reconstruction emphasizes the sustaining forces of cooperation. Literally, this article goes beyond the resource traction sector, to understand the basis of China-African cooperation, and the position mineral resource has taken in the bilateral cooperation. With a representative country case study, the current dilemma is shown from the structure of bilateral cooperation. Suggestions follow on how to address these challenges.

Keywords: China, Africa, mining, resource, investment, development.

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jsdlp.v8i1.3

* PhD (Peking), Associate Professor, Deputy Director and Secretary General of the Centre for African Studies, School of International Studies, Peking University, China. Email: liuhaifang@pku.edu.c

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AN EVALUATION OF CHINA’S CARBON EMISSION REDUCTION POLICIES ON URBAN TRANSPORT SYSTEM

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Hou Jiaru* and Feng Xiangzhao**

ABSTRACT

Climate change has become one of the hottest issues in international law. As the world’s second-largest greenhouse gas emission sector, the transport sector, especially the urban traffic system, is facing much more pressure to reduce its aggregate emissions. This article begins with a theoretical examination of the system theory, takes the cobenefit concept as a methodological guide and discusses various urban traffic emission reduction policies such as travel demand management, vehicles policies, fuel policies, road policies and comprehensive management policies of the urban transport system. It argues that holistic policy reform is the most important means of promoting CO2 emission reduction effectively in urban traffic system. It is unrealistic to only implement one type of policy to achieve CO2 emission reduction targets in urban traffic system; a policy mix will arguably be of great significance to achieve and sustain emission reduction. Therefore, the promotion and perfection of policy system of CO2 emission reduction in urban traffic system and the intensification of policy innovation should be deemed a strategic choice to effectively realize CO2 emission reduction targets in urban traffic system, while promoting the sustainable development of the urban traffic system, the city and the economy.

Keywords: Urban transport system, greenhouse gas emission reduction, policy summarizing.

Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jsdlp.v6i1.2

* Hou Jiaru, LLM (Vermont), PhD (Remin), Professor at Civil, Commercial & Economic Law School, China University of Political Science and Law, Beijing.

** Corresponding author: Feng Xiangzhao, PhD in economics, Associate Professor, currently serves at Climate Change Research Department, Policy Research Center for Environment and Economics of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, Beijing, China. Email: feng.xiangzhao@prcee.org. The article is supported by Program for Young Innovative Research Team in China University of Political Science and Law.

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CONSTRUCTING THE LEGAL SAFEGUARD FOR CHINA’S CARBON TAXATION

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Haifeng Deng * and Anna Wang **

ABSTRACT

Environmental protection practices of developed countries prove carbon taxation is an effective tool to reduce greenhouse effect, and China has already put it into official agenda. Based on Chinese environmental law system, the enforcement of carbon tax mainly faces four key challenges, contradiction with the existing taxes items; conflict with carbon trade system; adjustment of carbon tax collection and administrative structure; and coordination with international trade rules. In order to solve those problems, it is high time to build a legal protection system for carbon taxation. The essence of the legal protection system includes at least three aspects: Firstly, adjusting the existing environment tax rates. Secondly, coordinating with carbon trade system and make tax reduction policy for enterprises which have achieved reduction goals. Thirdly, constructing a dynamic balance administrative system and a comprehensive database system for carbon taxation.

Keywords: Carbon Tax; Legal protection; Function; Construction

* Haifeng Deng, Associate Professor of Law School, Tsinghua University, Haidian District, Beijing, China,100084, email: denghaifeng@126.com.

** Anna Wang, PhD Candidate of Law School, Tsinghua University, Haidian District, Beijing, China,100084.