After thirty years of stability, staple food prices have increased on average by 43% in world markets this year and 80% since 2005. The fastest rising commodity, wheat, was $105 a tonne in 2000 and now costs $481. This is of enormous concern in less developed countries (LDCs), but are there also opportunities present for poor farmers?
If questions about Sino-African relations could be reduced to their essence, these could be summarized as three main points. Firstly, China is not a unitary actor. Second, there is a degree of scapegoating of China and its alleged negative impacts upon Africa. Third, ultimately, it is up to African leaders to manage their relations with China to benefit their own economies and citizens.
Much of development has historically been directed by colonial powers and more recently by the neo-liberal consensus. This has led to a situation whereby developing countries have had little control over their own resources, policies, economies and futures.
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