The case for Chinese foreign aid

Political motives relate more to easing domestic problems than to achieving foreign domination.

Since 2000, China has spent $843 billion on bilateral aid. That is around $39.5 billion per year, similar to the amount provided by the United States, the world’s largest donor of foreign aid. Although the two countries’ definitions of foreign aid differ, no one disputes the fact that China—which in the past two decades has financed 13,427 bilateral aid projects in 165 countries—is the biggest new player in this domain. Moreover, recent research is challenging outside observers’ often negative view of the country’s overseas development schemes.