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Paper short abstract:

In light of global disruptions many countries nowadays increasingly look towards Africa. Apart from China, EU and US, more and more countries establish diplomatic initiatives with Africa. In a comparative analysis, the paper explores the economic cooperation of China, Japan and Turkey with Africa.

Paper long abstract:

As the large conferences of China, the EU and the US with African countries in 2021/22 have underscored, there are numerous diplomatic initiatives by various countries on Africa that indicate both the geostrategic competition and the increasing importance these countries place on Africa. However, the dominant focus in the academic debate on Chinese and Western activities in Africa should not obscure the fact that many other countries are engaged in Africa, developing Africa strategies and using their own institutions to intensify relations with the African continent. These countries are particularly interested in creating a favourable environment for the expansion of their own companies so that they can do business in the emerging African markets.

Therefore, we undertake a comparative analysis of the Africa initiatives of China, Japan and Turkey. We conduct a qualitative analysis of the policy documents of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) and the Turkey-Africa Partnership Summits in the time period 1993-2021. This paper explores the economic cooperation within those diplomatic initiatives, including financial commitments, key sectors and focus of business activities. The results will allow to compare the focus areas of economic cooperation, the intensity and ultimately the potential role these countries will play on the African continent in the future.