政大機構典藏-National Chengchi University Institutional Repository(NCCUR):Item 140.119/145321

政大典藏 > Journals of NCCU > Issues & Studies: A Social Science Quarterly on China, Taiwan, and East Asian Affairs > Issues & Studies > Item 140.119/145321

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://nccur.lib.nccu.edu.tw/handle/140.119/145321

Title:	Resisting China’s ICT Influence in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Bandwagoning-for-Profit Perspective
Authors:	Yang, Domingo I-Kwei
Contributors:	Issues & Studies
Keywords:	U.S.-Africa relations;China’s ICT influence;bandwagoning;Transsion Holdings;digital ecosystem
Date:	2023-03
Issue Date:	2023-06-14 13:58:53 (UTC+8)
Abstract:	In light of the increasingly pivotal role of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in the escalating US-China competition, this paper explores why US-led anti-Chinese information and communications technology (ICT) campaigns have not resonated with African countries. It notes that Washington’s narrative about China’s ICT activities in the region corresponds with Stephen Walt’s “balance of threat,” emphasizing the threat of China and demanding that African states balance against its cyber aggression. It argues, however, that American policymakers should focus more on Randall Schweller’s “bandwagoning for profit” to resist China’s ICT influence in the region because the pitfalls of malignant Chinese ICTs are outweighed by the opportunities and prospects of mobile-driven digital transformation there. This paper explores Washington’s unsatisfactory approach toward the SSA, traces China’s long-term penetration into the digital sector among African countries, and argues that the country’s strategic objective in the region is to establish a digital ecosystem filled with Chinese technologies and devices. It then evaluates the region’s digital prospects and the yearning among African countries to learn from China’s late development path. The paper concludes that China is not winning hearts and minds in the region and both strategies of balancing and bandwagoning persist in Sino-African relations. African countries would not always bandwagon with China if there were more alternatives. To resist the country’s ICT influence in the region, Washington should engage with Africa’s ICT industries, deepen trade relations and help to grow its digital economy.
Relation:	Issues & Studies, Vol.59, No.1, 2350004
Data Type:	article
DOI link:	https://doi.org/10.1142/S1013251123500042
DOI:	10.1142/S1013251123500042
Appears in Collections:	[Issues & Studies: A Social Science Quarterly on China, Taiwan, and East Asian Affairs] Issues & Studies

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