Keith Richburg, director of the Journalism and Media Studies Center at the University of Hong Kong, and former Africa Bureau Chief for the Washington Post, will give a lecture, “Dragon Among the Lions: What Does China Really Want From Africa?” in Taipei on Sept. 9. The lecture will be moderated by Lung Yingtai (龍應台), writer and former Taiwan Minister of Culture. China has surpassed the US as Africa’s largest trading partner, investing some US$7 billion each year in infrastructure projects around the continent. Is China really looking for a long-term relationship of “equality and mutual respect,” or does it want to be merely a “friend with benefits,” like so many of the Western colonial powers that came before? How much do ordinary Africans really benefit from China’s economic largesse? Richburg will discuss his perspective on China-Africa relations, their economic partnership and the geopolitical implications of the country and continent drawing ever closer.
■ Taiwan Academy of Banking and Finance (台灣金融研訓院), 2F, 62 Roosevelt Rd Sec 3, Taipei City (台北市羅斯福路三段62號2樓)
■ Sunday from 2pm to 3:30pm; free admission, but those wanting to attend must pre-register at www.civictaipei.org/registration.php (English and Chinese). For more information, call Yuan Ti at (02) 3322-4907, Ext. 14. The lecture will be held in English.
Photo courtesy of Lung Yingtai Cultural Foundation
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