Paper short abstract:

China's engagement in Africa seems more relevant than ever. In this presentation, the focus will be put on the role of China's diverse Media agendas as examples of Soft Power initiatives in Africa by providing recent case studies from a globalizing Chinese mediasphere.

Paper long abstract:

Since the re-election of Xi Jinping as General Secretary of the CCP for life and President of the People's Republic of China in 2017, China's engagement in Africa seems more relevant than ever. China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) or silk road initiative is often referred to as a Eurasian infrastructure network initiative, but this is in fact a rather myopic perception, as it is much more than that. The maritime silk road is planned to go past the coast of East Africa, where several ports are already being built and more will be built in the future. Ports are not only planned and under construction on the maritime silk road's direct way along Africa's east coast but also on coasts of Central and West Africa. The global and geopolitical consequences of China's engagement in Africa is, therefore, being discussed by Chinese and Non-Chinese scholars alike since quite some time and there exists already heated debate on the economic-financial and social-political impact of China's rise and greater global role in the future. In this presentation, the focus will be put on the role of China's diverse Media agendas as examples of Soft Power initiatives in Africa by providing recent case studies from a globalizing Chinese mediasphere.