More players in the game

The Chinese footpoot growing across Africa (The International Herald Tribune)

This article highlights evidence of the growing involvement of Chinese individuals and organizations in the development of Africa. I'm not surprised at this, to me it's inevitable. The rich western nations aren't the only ones with money; they don't have a monopoly on aid, or funds for business and infrastructure development. If they continue to act like they do they will really be left behind when the rest of the world successfully partners with African nations and the political capital of the G8 and international goodwill towards them sharply plummets. The author made an interesting observation that the bulk of the western presence in Africa is aid workers, researchers and the like; while the Chinese presence is comprised of business people and investors. He noted that the West often regards Africa as a place of failure, while Chinese people see it as a place of opportunity. The G8 countries are becoming political dinosaurs of archaic thinking; and their days are numbered.