Abstract

​

Three decades of average double-digit growth has helped propel China into the world’s second largest economy with global economies increasingly reliant on China to drive economic growth. As China transits from an investment-based economy to a consumer-based economy, its demand for raw materials is declining, affecting commodity prices, impacting on commodity sellers and exerting pressure on currencies around the world. With China’s position as Africa’s biggest trading partner, fears persist that the economic slowdown in China is being widely felt in Africa due to the huge trade volume between China and Africa, thus exposing African economies to spillages from the Chinese economy. This policy brief examines the current state of the Chinese economy and its impact on African economic growth and recommends a blend of policy measures aimed at curtailing the impact of the Chinese slowdown on Africa’s economy.